IMesh
Encyclopedia
iMesh is a media and file sharing
client that's available in 9 languages. It uses a proprietary, centralized, P2P
network (IM2Net) operating on ports 80
, 443
and 1863. iMesh is owned by an American
company iMesh, Inc. and maintains a development center in Israel
. It is the 3rd most popular music subscription service in the US.
iMesh operates the first "RIAA-approved" P2P service, allowing users residing in United States and Canada to download music content of choice for a monthly fee in the form of either a Premium subscription or a "ToGo" subscription. This subscription based approach is advocated by theories such as the Open Music Model
. A third option is also available for users (residing in either country) to permanently purchase tracks for 0.99 USD each, without a subscription.
In addition to the paid content, iMesh allows all users (regardless of origin country) access to "non-copyrighted" music and video files. A legalized ringtone download service provided by Thumbplay
is also available, allowing users to purchase ringtones for their cellphones.
) whilst implementing a paid service (iMesh 6.0). iMesh had first agreed to have the new service available by the end of 2004, however this was pushed back towards the end of 2005 due to technicalities
client, and acknowledged as being so by the RIAA
.
The iMesh 6 client (and later versions) have achieved this by detecting attempts to download copyrighted material and blocking the transfer through the use of acoustic fingerprint
ing, provided by Audible Magic.
An agreement with the MPAA
had also been reached. Video files more than 50 Mb
in size and 15 minutes in length can no longer be shared on the iMesh network, guaranteeing feature-length releases cannot be transferred across the network.
File sharing
File sharing is the practice of distributing or providing access to digitally stored information, such as computer programs, multimedia , documents, or electronic books. It may be implemented through a variety of ways...
client that's available in 9 languages. It uses a proprietary, centralized, P2P
Peer-to-peer
Peer-to-peer computing or networking is a distributed application architecture that partitions tasks or workloads among peers. Peers are equally privileged, equipotent participants in the application...
network (IM2Net) operating on ports 80
Hypertext Transfer Protocol
The Hypertext Transfer Protocol is a networking protocol for distributed, collaborative, hypermedia information systems. HTTP is the foundation of data communication for the World Wide Web....
, 443
Https
Hypertext Transfer Protocol Secure is a combination of the Hypertext Transfer Protocol with SSL/TLS protocol to provide encrypted communication and secure identification of a network web server...
and 1863. iMesh is owned by an American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
company iMesh, Inc. and maintains a development center in Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
. It is the 3rd most popular music subscription service in the US.
iMesh operates the first "RIAA-approved" P2P service, allowing users residing in United States and Canada to download music content of choice for a monthly fee in the form of either a Premium subscription or a "ToGo" subscription. This subscription based approach is advocated by theories such as the Open Music Model
Open Music Model
The Open Music Model is an economic and technological framework for the recording industry based on research conducted at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology...
. A third option is also available for users (residing in either country) to permanently purchase tracks for 0.99 USD each, without a subscription.
In addition to the paid content, iMesh allows all users (regardless of origin country) access to "non-copyrighted" music and video files. A legalized ringtone download service provided by Thumbplay
Thumbplay
Thumbplay is a U.S.-based subscription service that allows users to download music, video and games to their cell phones. Users can manage, store and share their mobile content online and on their wireless devices...
is also available, allowing users to purchase ringtones for their cellphones.
RIAA Lawsuit
On September 18, 2003 the RIAA (Recording Industry Association of America) sued iMesh for encouraging copyright infringement.Settlement
iMesh settled the lawsuit a little over 10 months later on July 20, 2004, where according to the RIAA, the terms of the settlement were that iMesh would pay them US$4.1 million and could continue operating as normal (unlike GroksterGrokster
Grokster Ltd. was a privately owned software company based in Nevis, West Indies that created the Grokster peer-to-peer file-sharing client in 2001 that utilized the FastTrack protocol. Grokster Ltd. was rendered extinct in late 2005 by the United States Supreme Court's decision in MGM Studios,...
) whilst implementing a paid service (iMesh 6.0). iMesh had first agreed to have the new service available by the end of 2004, however this was pushed back towards the end of 2005 due to technicalities
Legality
iMesh is now advertised as a 100% legal P2PPeer-to-peer
Peer-to-peer computing or networking is a distributed application architecture that partitions tasks or workloads among peers. Peers are equally privileged, equipotent participants in the application...
client, and acknowledged as being so by the RIAA
Recording Industry Association of America
The Recording Industry Association of America is a trade organization that represents the recording industry distributors in the United States...
.
The iMesh 6 client (and later versions) have achieved this by detecting attempts to download copyrighted material and blocking the transfer through the use of acoustic fingerprint
Acoustic fingerprint
An acoustic fingerprint is a condensed digital summary, deterministically generated from an audio signal, that can be used to identify an audio sample or quickly locate similar items in an audio database....
ing, provided by Audible Magic.
An agreement with the MPAA
Motion Picture Association of America
The Motion Picture Association of America, Inc. , originally the Motion Picture Producers and Distributors of America , was founded in 1922 and is designed to advance the business interests of its members...
had also been reached. Video files more than 50 Mb
Megabyte
The megabyte is a multiple of the unit byte for digital information storage or transmission with two different values depending on context: bytes generally for computer memory; and one million bytes generally for computer storage. The IEEE Standards Board has decided that "Mega will mean 1 000...
in size and 15 minutes in length can no longer be shared on the iMesh network, guaranteeing feature-length releases cannot be transferred across the network.
Original program
- November 24, 1999, a pre-beta 1.02 was released.
- December 26, 1999, a beta version 1.02 was released which features instant messaging between users, a new skin and anti-virus scanning.
- March 2, 2001, version 2.0 was released.
- March 18, 2002, version 3.1 was released.
- April 15, 2003 iMesh 4.1 was released.
- September 4, 2003 iMesh 4.2 was released.
- June 8, 2004, iMesh 5.0 was released which was the first multi-networked version allowing users to connect to the eDonkey NetworkEDonkey networkThe eDonkey network is a decentralized, mostly server-based, peer-to-peer file sharing network best suited to share big files among users, and to provide long term availability of files...
, GnutellaGnutellaGnutella is a large peer-to-peer network which, at the time of its creation, was the first decentralized peer-to-peer network of its kind, leading to other, later networks adopting the model...
, Gnutella2Gnutella2Gnutella2, often referred to as G2, is a peer-to-peer protocol developed mainly by Michael Stokes and released in 2002. While inspired by the gnutella protocol, G2 shares little of its design with the exception of its connection handshake and download mechanics. It adopts an extensible binary...
(like MLDonkeyMLDonkeyMLDonkey is an open source, multi-protocol, peer-to-peer file sharing application that runs as a back-end server application on many platforms. It can be controlled through a user interface provided by one of many separate front-ends, including a Web interface, telnet interface and over a dozen...
and ShareazaShareazaShareaza is a peer-to-peer file sharing client running under Microsoft Windows which supports the gnutella, Gnutella2 , eDonkey, BitTorrent, FTP, HTTP and HTTPS network protocols and handles magnet links, ed2k links, and the now deprecated gnutella and Piolet links...
) and the iMesh network. - August 25, 2004, iMesh 5.0 build 223 was released with support for the eDonkey Network removed due to many bugs.
- June 30, 2005, iMesh 5.2 was released.
Current program
- October 25, 2005, iMesh 6.0 was released. The first "RIAA-approved" P2P service.
- April 10, 2006, iMesh 6.5 was released, allowing users to send instant messages to each other and simultaneously listen to the same songs with the "Listen Together" feature
- November 6, 2006, iMesh 7.0 was released, which added social networking features, instant messaging, an improved user interface and greater stability to the client.
- April 11, 2007, iMesh 7.1 was released.
- April 5, 2008, iMesh 7.2 was released.
- October 12, 2008, iMesh 8.0 was released with a new skin, the ability to purchase music in the MP3 format and integration with YouTubeYouTubeYouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....
, allowing videos to be searched for and downloaded to a user's library. - December 23, 2008, iMesh 8.1 was released with various bug fixes and the key feature being a 'guest' mode, allowing users to access the service and download P2P content without the need of registering.
- May 11, 2009, iMesh 9.0 was released featuring an 'iMesh DJ', enabling users to choose an artist or song and instantly receive a playlist of similar artists, streamed directly from YouTubeYouTubeYouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....
.
iMesh Facts
- iMesh now distributes the BearShareBearShareBearShare is a peer-to-peer file sharing application originally created by Free Peers, Inc. for Microsoft Windows, and now sold by MusicLab, LLC .- History :...
software, after Free Peers agreed to pay $30 million in a settlement with the RIAA and transferred all their BearShare-related assets to MusicLab, LLC, a SubsidiarySubsidiaryA subsidiary company, subsidiary, or daughter company is a company that is completely or partly owned and wholly controlled by another company that owns more than half of the subsidiary's stock. The subsidiary can be a company, corporation, or limited liability company. In some cases it is a...
of iMesh. - iMesh is also distributed under the names ShareazaShareazaShareaza is a peer-to-peer file sharing client running under Microsoft Windows which supports the gnutella, Gnutella2 , eDonkey, BitTorrent, FTP, HTTP and HTTPS network protocols and handles magnet links, ed2k links, and the now deprecated gnutella and Piolet links...
and LphantLphantLphant is a peer-to-peer file sharing client for the Microsoft Windows, Linux and Mac OS operating systems, which supports the eDonkey Network and the BitTorrent protocol. It is available in 19 languages...
by Discordia Ltd, which acquired the Lphant and the Shareaza domain nameDomain nameA domain name is an identification string that defines a realm of administrative autonomy, authority, or control in the Internet. Domain names are formed by the rules and procedures of the Domain Name System ....
s.