Guiding Internet traffic can dramatically reduce P2P downloading time

London, September 10 : Scientists at the University of Washington in Seattle have come up with a new scheme that can solve the problem low connection speeds during peer-to-peer (P2P) downloading.

Such problems usually occur when Internet users download P2P content that is stored a long way from their homes, and the online links over thousands of kilometres get tied up delivering it.

The researchers say that their scheme called Proactive Provider Participation for P2P (P4P) can help ease the load.

Their idea is to take the help of Internet service providers (ISPs) in supplying P2P sites with data on the shortest routes between peers.

They also propose to involve network traffic reports that identify uncongested routes, reports New Scientist magazine.

While making a presentation at a Seattle conference on the internet last week, the researchers revealed that tests conducted by them suggested that P4P could cut the average trip of a P2P data packet from 1600 kilometres to just 250 km, reducing overall load by about 80 per cent.

ANI