"BitTorrent is an open source peer-to-peer file
protocol for sharing large software and media files. It is a well
established protocol which accounts for a significant proportion of
internet traffic.
"A file provider initially makes a file (or group of files)
available to the network. This is called a seed and allows others,
named peers, to connect and download the file. Each peer that
downloads a part of the data makes it available to other peers to
download. After the file is successfully downloaded by a peer, many
continue to make the data available, becoming additional seeds.
"Unlike other download methods, BitTorrent maximizes transfer
speed by gathering pieces of a file and downloading them
simultaneously from people who already have them. This enables
multiple concurrent downloads of the same file, and at the same
time minimises the load on centralized servers."
