P2P networking comes of age

Abstract

Despite its controversial reputation, peer-to-peer (P2P) networking is expected to survive the current debate which centers on illegal file sharing. P2P networks are simply to useful to be eliminated and are being used by mainstream companies such as the BBC for economic reasons. In this paper, the main attraction of these networks are enumerated. The paper also describes their various application categories which include virtual LAN, communications, data privacy, data storage, and homeland security. Finally, it discusses the conflict in QoS control requirements for the network between the P2P user and the network operator.