Digital Music's Next Foundation: Gated P-To-PDigital Music's Next Foundation: Gated P-To-P

RealNetworks Inc. has developed a version of "gated" peer-to-peer technology that will enable MusicNet, the service it's launching this summer with AOL Time Warner, Bertelsmann AG, and EMI Recorded Music, to go where file-sharing phenom Napster Inc. probably wishes it could have. Analysts predict that MusicNet's implied endorsement of gated peer-to-peer, which offers digital music distributors significant control over files being exchanged, will build significant momentum for the technology.

Gated peer-to-peer tackles the concerns that have gotten Napster into such legal hot water. It enables service providers that host file-sharing services to tightly control their systems by allowing only the files they enter to be exchanged, thus ensuring that copyright requirements have been met. The result is a potential source of steady income where previous peer-to-peer systems have made music available free of charge. MusicNet will use the technology to detect subscribers' requests for music files, check that their accounts are current, and permit or deny the file exchange.

David Halprin, lead product manager for MusicNet, says the technology also will let MusicNet greatly control the quality of files being exchanged, providing a guarantee that distributed peer-to-peer systems like Napster can't supply. "In a gated peer-to-peer network, it's controlled, so we know the files being exchanged between consumers are indeed what they're purported to be," Halprin says.

MusicNet's decision to use gated peer-to-peer technology moves the service one step closer to reality, says Webnoize researcher Gregor Rohda. "This at least gives us a better window as to what may emerge from the mist," he says. Rohda says the gated version of peer-to-peer represents a natural evolution from its distributed ancestor, and he expects widespread adoption. "Gated peer-to-peer is going to define music subscription services by the end of the year," he says. "It's a really good interim solution for everyone involved."