Sure you love using BitTorrent (or the tiny-yet-mighty client, µTorrent) but how much do you know about the people behind the product? We’ve been growing like crazy and this past Tuesday, we hit a major milestone: 100 employees.
For those of you that haven’t hit us up on Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, or the like just yet (or stopped in to our offices on 303 2nd Street in SF), we thought it was time to say “hello.” Herewith, your invitation to meet our team.
Today, we are releasing a beta version of the μTorrent Mac client. Several of the enhancements in this version have been top requests from you – the users – within our Idea Bank. As was the original intent of the Idea Bank, we are taking your valuable feedback and using it to enhance and provide an even better μTorrent Mac experience!
Here are some of the new key feature enhancements:
- Add Torrent Dialog with Save Settings and File Selection – When a torrent is added via upload or URL, there is a new dialog, which allows you to choose a download location and make decisions about what files to include in the download.
- Growl Support – μTorrent now supports the popular Growl notification system. Users can configure notifications when downloads or seeding is complete or when a torrent has been auto-added.
- Dock Icon Badging – The dock icon can now display real-time upload and/or download speed information.
- Move Torrent Save Location – Now you can right click on a torrent and go to advanced and set a new download location. The relevant files will be moved to a new location for the user without interrupting the download.
We have also made a few other minor updates, which can all be found in the release notes. As always, we look forward to your feedback!
- Brett -
We first introduced apps in a µTorrent beta this past spring. Since then, thanks to the feedback and assistance of our user community, the product has gone through several iterations and upgrades. Now we are ready to launch the App Studio as a full feature to the entire µTorrent user base.
We will always strive to maintain the lightweight and fast attributes of µTorrent. With the App Studio, we can introduce new features and direct access to unique content on an individual basis. You choose only the features and content you want, and we keep the core µTorrent as fast and powerful as ever.
The App Studio enables one-click downloads and new features right inside µTorrent. Looking for interesting content? Try TEDTalks, films from VODO, and music from ClearBits. Other popular apps include social media/sharing features like TorrentTweet and utility apps TuneUp and BitDefender’s VirusGuard and games from Raptr and Outspark. 
Also, to celebrate this release and continue with the artists experiments, we have teamed up with VODO again to release ‘Four Eyed Monsters,’ an award winning docudrama that chronicles the relationship of a couple who meet on the Internet and fall in love through emails, notes, videos and pictures, to users as a free download. There’s a custom app in the App Studio, which makes it easy to download the film and gives you background information, access to social media profiles, images and a link to support the creators. We are also offering it with all new downloads of µTorrent for the next few days.
The creators of Four Eyed Monsters are the latest to embrace the BitTorrent and μTorrent distribution channel as part of an effort to reach our community of over 80+ million users, and experiment with new digital business models. This is part of our broader effort to bridge the gap between content creators and our community through the App Studio and other promotions. In case you missed it, in September we announced a Feature Artist Pilot Program, which encourages musicians and filmmakers to submit creative works for the chance to be spotlighted to millions of BitTorrent users around the world. Stay tuned for more great launches!
The updated version of μTorrent is more flexible and powerful than ever and includes several feature enhancements, including full support for μTP, an upgraded lightweight BitTorrent protocol, transport and congestion control support; improved magnet link handling; file relocation features; advanced proxy privacy features; and many more. Check out the other cool new features in the new μTorrent here.
We hope you enjoy the App Studio, and stay tuned for more exciting movies and music to come out of out Artist Program in the next several months! Are you a developer with JavaScript skills? We welcome your apps…get the SDK here.
And if you happen to be at NewTeeVee Live today, please drop by our table and say hello. Bram Cohen, chief scientist, and Shahi Ghanem, our new chief strategist and EVP of marketing, will be on stage talking about the future of BitTorrent. Big day for us…more news coming soon!
- Brett -
Today is the first day of the TechCrunch Disrupt conference, and we have a couple of exciting announcements to share.
First, if you check your new apps feature (recently released in the new BitTorrent Mainline client and the µTorrent beta), you’ll find two cool new apps.
The first brings the world-famous TEDTalks directly to you, offering instant, one-click downloads of the latest inspiring and dynamic and educational presentations by well-known personalities in the fields of technology, entertainment, design, business and global development. The concept behind TED is “ideas worth spreading” and through the power of BitTorrent, we’re doing our part to get the word out.
Second, we’re very excited to announce the winner of the µTorrent Developer Challenge. Zulu Music – developed by Steven Viola – gives you an opportunity to discover and download new artists for free via the Jamendo API. Congratulations Steven! His app appears today along with the TED app.
Last but certainly not least, we’re celebrating the unveiling of a new pilot program designed to help connect artists directly with our millions of users. The Featured Artist program offers musicians and filmmakers the ability to submit their work for consideration for special promotions. After our successful work with the filmmakers behind Yes Men, Pioneer One and the popular musician PAZ, we’d like to give other artists a chance to explore this new and unique distribution model. Artists can upload their creations at www.bittorrent.com/artists for a chance to be spotlighted. Please help spread the word!
-Eric-
µTorrent Server for Linux
This morning, we are announcing a preview release of the first of two new products for Linux users. µTorrent Server, an alpha version available immediately for download here, is intended for users seeking a fast, powerful and lightweight BitTorrent client without the need of the full features and complexity of the native GUI. The server is a daemonizable 32-bit binary of the µTorrent core, built for x86 compatible Linux. It can be managed programmatically via an HTTP API or interactively by using the (included) customized version of the popular uTorrent Web user interface. µTorrent Server is a native Linux build from the same codebase as our very latest clients, featuring µTP support and all of the protocol improvements and extensions µTorrent users expect.
Today, we are distributing this as an archive to users who know their way around Linux and can help us test it and improve it before a wider release as a package for specific distros. If you are comfortable with extracting tar archives, running programs from the command line, and manually configuring a settings file then we invite you to download and try the alpha.
Today’s version is only the first step, and we will continue to support the Linux user community with new versions in the near future. If you prefer to stick to more conventional user experience, rest assured we are working hard to build a full-featured client, coming soon. µTorrent Linux will offer the same clean and full featured UI that millions of users of of µTorrent on Windows have enjoyed. We are hoping to get this out to you for testing in a few months. Stay tuned!
In the meantime, we look forward to hearing what you think of µTorrent Server – please join us in our forums and continue to help shape the future of µTorrent through the Idea Bank, or share your thoughts below.
- Brett –
Yesterday, we were alerted to a DLL vulnerability in Microsoft Windows reportedly affecting up to 200 consumer software applications. Subsequently, attack code targeting the μTorrent client was posted to a third-party website, and while thus far, no attacks have been reported to us, we will release a new build of our μTorrent software today. The new client disables the vulnerable DLL loading and ensures the client will not load DLLs from the current working directory in the future. More information can be found here: http://www.reuters.com/article/idUS2168761020100825
As security enthusiasts ourselves, we take our user’s security very seriously, and we sincerely apologize for any inconvenience.
For a lot of musicians the dream is to get a deal with a big record label; make an album; and then make lots of money. The reality is that most musicians will never get that big record deal. Even if they do, most traditional models follow the sort of “hit maker” model that removes the artist from the process and doesn’t allow them to connect with their audiences – much less to reap many of the rewards.
With the shift from physical to digital media a new breed on artist has emerged in the music scene. This new wave of creators are looking for alternative distribution methods to reach consumers and grow their fan bases organically. They are artists like PAZ.
It was just a few years ago when PAZ entered a MasterCard competition for college musicians. Out of 25,000 aspiring hopefuls, he was chosen to tour with country music legends Tim McGraw and Big & Rich. His unique sound made a big impression on Tim McGraw, who ultimately took PAZ under his wing.
When PAZ began thinking about distribution for his debut mixtape, “Young Broke and Fameless,” he wasn’t looking to get his music on iTunes or Amazon, but wanted an approach that would allow him to establish his name and share his music with the largest possible number of people. So, PAZ decided to join a growing list of creators who are leveraging BitTorrent distribution to tap into a powerful online community and reach millions of consumers for free.
You could say that for PAZ his career has been a bit like a social experiment where he is using a variety of platforms to connect with consumers and incorporate them into every step of the process – including choosing the cover art for “Young Broke and Fameless.” For PAZ, it is about being a trailblazer for a new unified model, and so far his willingness to take risks has paid off. In only a few short months he has built a series of successes on non-traditional platforms and developed a substantial audience.
In today’s digital age, the traditional model that artists once bowed to does not serve them in the same ways. Artists like PAZ are creating a new media model that is not based on selling units of CDs or even downloads. What he is creating is much more important – it is consumer engagement. In doing so, he is building a fan base that will invariably attend shows and purchase merchandise down the road.
The Internet has created a model of empowerment that allows creators to retain full control of their creative works, and now BitTorrent is helping them build a business model that will fit with the new digital realities. We are always interested in working with content creators who want to develop models that play to the strengths of the Internet, and allows them to tune into the distribution potential of BitTorrent to reach millions of people within communities that might otherwise be inaccessible.
For a limited time starting today, PAZ’s mixtape will be available from his website; via our website; with all fresh downloads of the µTorrent client; and at ClearBits. The torrent file is here.
- Simon -
Well. Interesting week. Google and Verizon claimed to have solved the Net Neutrality debate. But on whose behalf?
True, these two iconic Internet brands deserve a seat at the table in determining the health and regulations of our global network’s backbone. Yet ultimately any compromises must be struck by the industry at large – with the best interest of the consumer first and foremost, as defined by the consumer (not shareholders).
Most of the key points of this proposal have been thoroughly hashed out and the media has done an excellent job at analyzing the good, the bad and the ugly. Today, there’s one factor I’d like to highlight: the fines.
No matter how the agreements, laws or regulations surrounding Net Neutrality are resolved, they must be enforceable. Bad behavior by either the ISPs or Web services cannot result in a slap on the wrist, lest the entire Internet infrastructure becomes a pay-to-play system. If the fine for throttling Skype or BitTorrent traffic is a mere $2 million but saves $10 million (and you may not even get caught), then where’s the incentive to play by the rules? Does the FCC have resources and technologies to monitor and enforce in real-time?
At BitTorrent, we are tireless advocates for Net Neutrality. The Internet belongs to everyone, wired and wireless, and therefore the only solution is for an open and transparent network that doesn’t bias toward specific types of traffic. (While we do agree that ISPs must be able to make money off their network investments, let us not forget that many of those networks relied upon taxpayer contributions, public lands and, in the case of wireless, public spectrum leased to the ISP.)
Of course network operators need the tools to “manage” their networks, but there needs to be a neutral framework within which this management takes place, there must be transparency over what is happening, and there must be real penalties to prevent practices under the guide of network management from turning into simple “choosing of the winners.”
And what is the price of complacency or appeasement here? The next wave of Internet companies must have the freedom to innovate or technology will quickly stagnate. We don’t believe either backroom deals between major corporations, or government intervention will offer a full and lasting solution. Continuous, fast-paced, open and transparent innovation is the only answer.
Yes, with media and cloud services exploding in demand, networks are being taxed. This is why we developed µTP (Micro Transport Protocol) – an intelligent delivery protocol capable of sensing traffic congestion ahead and can reroute data on a smoother path. It’s one example of the types of innovations we all need to cooperate around to ensure a healthy Internet with opportunities for all.
While Google and Verizon took things into their own hands this week, it’s important to note that Net Neutrality is certainly not yet decided. There is much more to this drama still to run and the stakes are high for everyone – stay tuned.
- Eric -
Fundamentally, BitTorrent is about creating a more efficient and open Internet. We believe that μTP, an updated BitTorrent protocol that makes efficient use of bandwidth while reducing network problems, is a critical component in continuing to drive that legacy forward. μTP is an enhanced BitTorrent transfer protocol that we introduced in our μTorrent client a few months back. While BitTorrent 6.x clients partially supported it, the new BitTorrent 7 client now has support for μTP on a par with the popular μTorrent software.
In addition to μTP there are several other improvements in BitTorrent 7 including:
- UDP NAT-traversal – an improved way to find peers who might otherwise be stuck behind firewalls;
- Transfer Cap feature – a way to limit the total bytes transferred by your client in a specific period, to keep you in line with any limits imposed by your ISP;
- UDP Tracker support – a way to reduce the load on trackers and improve performance.
The technology on which the μTP protocol is based is also available as an open source software library published here. Several other BitTorrent clients either have implemented μTP support or are now considering it. We hope we will continue to see wider adoption of μTP across the BitTorrent ecosystem.
In many ways, μTP is a get-smart approach to managing traffic on the network. Where its predecessor TCP could only detect a problem on the network once a packet was dropped and when a user’s Internet connection had slowed to a crawl, μTP can slow itself at the earliest signs that the network is getting overloaded – avoiding problems before they become acute. While some users have been concerned that they don’t want a BitTorrent client that slows itself down, the somewhat counter-intuitive result is that by automatically avoiding over-aggressive behavior, the downloads tend to actually go faster.
We continue to see µTP as a mutually beneficial solution for users and ISPs. Moreover, we believe that it is in the best interest of all parties when all stakeholders do their part to preserve a neutral Internet and self-regulate. BitTorrent Inc. is grounded in innovation, and µTP is the natural progression in ensuring that the Internet can scale and continue to evolve to meet users’ ever-changing demands.
- Simon -
