BitTorrent to stream live content to Apple TV, iOS and Mac

In an effort to shake off its shady image, BitTorrent is launching a new streaming service that will bring a number of live channels to Apple TV, iOS, and Mac.

The service is called BitTorrent Live, and it will initially offer news, sport, music, and more.

When you think of BitTorrent, you immediately think of torrents… and then of piracy. For years, the service has been used to download movies, music, software, and more illegally — even though BitTorrent’s creators tell us that’s not what it’s intended for.

But soon, BitTorrent will have another use. With BitTorrent Live, the power of peer-to-peer networking will be used to deliver live video — without the performance and stability problems we get with currently streaming technologies.

“Powered by our proprietary and patented peer-to-peer live streaming protocol, BitTorrent Live allows for large audiences to view live video with sub 10-second latency and without the need for an expensive CDN or pre-provisioning,” BitTorrent explains.

“Every viewer is also a broadcaster” with BitTorrent Live, which makes live video stronger and as scalable as traditional over-the-air television.

BitTorrent Live will be available on the Apple TV this week, and then on iOS and OS X sometime in June. When it launches, it will have channels like Fightbox, Newsmax, NUsicTV, One World Sport, OpenNews TV, and TWiT.