TorrentFreak

• Ernesto
• February 15, 2013
• 103
• bittorrent
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BitTorrent Inc., the company behind the popular file-sharing clients uTorrent and BitTorrent, launched a new file-sharing service today. Branded SoShare, the new platform is a hybrid between BitTorrent and cloud based storage, allowing users to send files up to dozens of terabytes. SoShare is free of charge and without limits, making it an appealing competitor to more traditional file-storage sites.

Traditionally, BitTorrent and cyberlockers are seen as two entirely different file-sharing platforms. San-Francisco based BitTorrent Inc. hopes to break down the barriers between them.

The company’s newly launched SoShare service is a file-sharing platform that allows users to upload and share as they do with cyberlockers, but with transfers that are boosted by BitTorrent.

One of the advantages compared to most competitors in this field is the absence of storage or sending limits. SoShare users can send files of any size, and as many as they want.

“There really is no limit,” BitTorrent’s Catherine Meek told TorrentFreak in a comment.

Sharing a file using SoShare is pretty straightforward, but requires a browser plugin to add the BitTorrent functionality. Once the plugin is installed users can upload files and share these privately via email or a public link. Recipients don’t need an account to download the files, but do need the SoShare plugin.

BitTorrent chose to add centralized hosting to guarantee that the files remain available, even when the sender turns off his or her computer.

“SoShare accommodates distributed file transfer while the service maintains one master copy in the cloud for reliable access. The more people who have access to a file, the more the SoShare plug-in can help with the availability of bandwidth,” Meek says.

The lack of paid plans and data limits is what sets SoShare apart from traditional cloud based file-hosting services. “The capacity of what you can send, is way more,” Meek tells us.

The company says it will also add encryption to its arsenal, a feature which Mega has heavily promoted in recent months. However, BitTorrent doesn’t view SoShare as a direct competitor to most cloud storage services.

“We’re focused on sending, not locker storage, so the workflow is pretty straightforward. Again, we identified a need for the creative community during the alpha and that is what SoShare aims to address,” Meek says.

For the time being SoShare will remain completely free and BitTorrent Inc. has not yet decided how to monetize the service in the future.

“For now, we’re going into the public beta without fees. We’ll be looking at a few options along the way, but building something that is reliable and adds value to the user is our primary objective.”

One of the downsides, aside from the beta bugs, is that there’s currently no support for Linux. SoShare works with Chrome, Firefox and Safari on Mac, and Chrome, Firefox and Internet Explorer on Windows.

For those who are interested in giving it a spin, SoShare is open to the public since a few hours. Here are some Dan Bull tracks we’d like to share.

Traditionally, BitTorrent and cyberlockers are seen as two entirely different file-sharing platforms. San-Francisco based BitTorrent Inc. hopes to break down the barriers between them. The company’s newly launched SoShare service...