MUMBAI: US media conglomerate NBC Universal and Wurld Media, the creator of the legitimate Peer to Peer (P2P) service Peer Impact, have announced an agreement that will make Universal movies and NBC Universal TV events content available to Peer Impact customers on demand.
This agreement marks the first ever license of major studio content to a legitimate P2P service. Titles will be available for rental for a 24-hour viewing period after purchase. NBC Universal chairman and CEO Bob Wright says, "NBC Universal has a long history of embracing technology to better serve our viewers. This agreement is a significant step forward in our goal to capitalise on the myriad possibilities of new digital-media services, in a way that allows us to safeguard our content from illegal distribution."
Peer Impact says that it offers its users a secure, high quality environment for rental and purchase of digital content, including music, video games, and with this announcement, for the first time, major film and television event titles. For the benefit of its users, all content is placed on the P2P network by Wurld Media -no unauthorized content can be introduced on to the network.
As with all digital content that is traded over Peer Impact, users will earn Peer Cash for their participation in distributing videos on the network and for recommending video purchases to others. Peer Impact's technology allows members to earn cash back for acting as 'paid redistributors' of content purchased over the network. Users simply leave their computers on, and if they are selected as a source of fulfillment for purchases on the network, they receive Peer Cash that may be used toward future purchases.
On demand movies from the Universal film library include Oscar winning films Ray and The Motorcycle Diaries; recent titles such as Meet the Fockers and The Bourne Supremacy as well as upcoming premieres of The Skeleton Key, Cinderella Man and The Forty Year Old Virgin. Specials and stunts include Jerry Springer: Uncensored, 5th Wheel and Blind Date franchises; family-friendly programming like Kicking & Screaming, the Balto series and The Land Before Time.
This announcement is the latest in Peer Impact's licensing and distribution arrangements. Peer Impact recently launched the first multimedia version of their service, which introduced over 1000 video games to the service and has bolstered its music catalogue to include not only all major music labels but the largest independent labels as well.
