P2P Filesharing - the concept is over 10 years old now. P2P is called peer to peer; meaning a network of computers and users sharing anything and everything on their computer with anyone and everyone. Great concept, terrible business model which ended up becoming one of the largest legal battles of the time, with the rock band metallica winning and shutting down Napster.
Essentially, a peer to peer network puts control and management on the user community. Napster and other similar file sharing applications are either subscription based, or are controlled by a centralized network, which monitor user activity, collect statistics, learn user habits and often offer advertisements, or sponsored downloads. The true spirit of peer to peer networking is to share and share alike. No prying eyes, and no limitations. Truly free downloads are hard to find, however they do exist. First and foremost is Ares P2P software
The primary difference with Ares, is a decentralized network, managed collectively by the public. There are no RIAA, or MPAA watchdogs to worry about. The software itself is open source which is similar to public domain. The base product Ares itself has many flavors and features, all developed by individuals for a common goal - the best P2P software with the most features. if you prefer bells and whistles, then you might read an Ares Gold review.
You've heard the news, read about the RIAA, MPAA and other groups protecting their rights, which is fine and dandy. No doubt you have also heard about some innocent people also getting legally threatened, sued, and generally frightened out of their wits for allegedly downloading protected content. From Grandmothers to infants - no one is safe from the long arm of the law!
The only way around this is to NOT be a part of a centralized network. If the network is controlled by one computer, then it can be traced. The software itself also being open source cannot be traced to one developer.
That complications do not stop there however, as majort ISP's are being held legally accountable for allowing illegal downloading and sharing of copyrighted works. The ISP's then have to protect themselves by using various means such traffic firewalls, traffic limitations, traffic snooping - which in itself may be considered illegal - and various algorithms to detect your download and uploading activities. This as a result cripples most P2P software applications, thus requiring an update, or a software patch - which starts an endless cycle or IPS vs. P2P software battling.
P2P software has to be designed to be intelligent and to be able to predict, and react to ISP and other means of traffic manipulation and limitation. A P2P software program like Ares does just this. It boasts better speed, more content, more features, better support, and it is always updated. The community at large would have it no other way!