What exactly is peer-to-peer file sharing?
Formally, peer-to-peer technologies (P2P) are defined as applications that directly connect any two computers over the Internet—or any other network—without the use of a third-party server. The most famous—or infamous—use of P2P’s distributed architecture is file sharing, which is defined as the act of providing digital content for download via a network where all computers, or “peers,” function as both servers and clients simultaneously. Peers on a P2P file sharing network request, upload and download specific files from other peers directly. Text files, images, software, video games, audio files and video files are easily and quickly exchanged via P2P systems. What is the Digital Millennium Copyright Act? The DMCA, passed in 1998, is an extension of United States copyright law that serves to protect copyrighted materials in the digital age. Without getting too specific, the DMCA (1) criminalizes the use and sale of access-control technologies (a.k.a. digital-rights management or DRM)
