> Mikael Abrahamsson wrote: > I would also like to add that over here Direct Connect is > quite common among the more organized and hard-core file > swappers, while the really-hardcore guys of course are > still using private ftp servers.
There is some private FTP server use in the US as well; it is difficult to measure the bandwidth it uses, as it often involves encryption and therefore is inventoried as miscellaneous traffic by probes. I am not a hardcore file swapper, but like everyone else I granted access to my FTP to a few buddies. However, it works only over VPN: no static IP and no encryption, no FTP (there also is an unwritten clause about red wine). I believe that Europeans tend to underestimate American private FTP usage (and vice-versa) because it is more difficult for someone from the other side of the pond to penetrate the relatively private circles of private FTP file sharing. > With proliferation of 10 meg ethernet (full duplex) connections > for residential use in (especially) northern europe and in asia, > users are more likely to serve content to other users around the > world. Note that 10meg Ethernet full-duplex is becoming available in the US as well. Where I live (Sacramento, California) we have this: http://personal.surewest.com/internet/highspeed10mb.php Note that they cap the service at 40 GB/mo, which still is ~40 movies, more than I can watch :-) > My interpretation of this is that p2p networks are quite > intelligent in using the available bandwidth, and that > Copyright holders only solution is a "content crunch" due > to providers limiting their users upload potential due to > heavy usage, such as capping the amount of bandwidth > allowed per month or alike. I agree, but see above: a 40GB/mo cap is not something that I care about. Granted, I'm not a hardcore file swapper but 40GB/mo are more than enough for most including myself. As shown here: http://arneill-py.sacramento.ca.us/mrtg/192.168.222.1_et0_0.html My usage last month was 2 GB and the average over the last 20 months was 8GB/mo. And I do share some files. > Petri Helenius wrote: > If you leave BitTorrent out, which is probably the fastest > growing protocol out there, the statistics are missing about > one third of the bits moved. BitTorrent is a third of p2p traffic in Sweden? Wow. In the US it is a small blip on the radar. My reading about the big five is as follows: +------------+-----------------+---------------------------------------+ ! Protocol ! Typical client ! Comments ! +------------+-----------------+---------------------------------------+ ! FastTrack ! Kazaa ! Declines everywhere. Privacy concerns ! ! ! ! are killing it in the US. ! +------------+-----------------+---------------------------------------+ ! WinMX ! Winmx ! Stable client, stable market share. ! ! ! ! Fit for MP3s, not for warez or movies ! +------------+-----------------+---------------------------------------+ ! Gnutella ! various, a mess ! Doomed to disappear sooner or later. ! +------------+-----------------+---------------------------------------+ ! eDonkey ! mostly eMule ! Fastest rising in the US (at the ! ! ! now ! expense of FastTrack, mostly). There ! ! ! ! are more than one client but it's not ! ! ! ! a mess like Gnutella. Fit for large ! ! ! ! files, for MP3s initial queing has ! ! ! ! pushed lots of users back to WinMX ! +------------+-----------------+---------------------------------------+ ! BitTorrent ! BitTorrent ! New; reported fit both for large ! ! ! ! files and MP3s however privacy ! ! ! ! concerns are as high as Kazaa and the ! ! ! ! interface is not nearly as polished ! ! ! ! as WinMX or eMule. Too early to call. ! +------------+-----------------+---------------------------------------+ Crystal ball reading: Gnutella will disappear. WinMX and eDonkey will eventually eat FastTrack (numerous swappers use both WinMX and eMule); BitTorrent is an outsider. Regional differences between Western Europe and North America will blend; Asia/Pacific too early to make predictions. Michel.