.mrt memo

Seems like Canada has the first reasonable big TV network, at least in North America, that is beginning to offer TV shows via BitTorrent. DRM free, simple torrents! “The show will be completely free (and legal) for you to download, share & burn to your heart’s desire.” Funny I don’t see Creative Common Licence attached anywhere near. I guess that would have been too much to ask. One step at a time.

The show’s “Canada’s Next Great Prime Minister“. Downloads via MiniNova.org. The show has it’s own channel on Youtube. For example watch the last year’s finale. But some videos are not available outside the Canada. Like this.

Now of course, if you’re not canadian, as me, then you’d go “Canada’s Next whadda wha?”, but is seems the show within Canadian borders is a hit, with as many viewers tuning in as an episode of House. (.oO how badass would it be to get legal episodes of House like that .. I love House MD.)

Info via various sources, among them Michael Geist, an Ottawa-based advocate of open sharing over the internet. There seems to be somekind of problem with Canadian ISP’s who are restricting torrent traffic in their networks, so basically the irony might very well be true.

“It would be ironic if ISP network management practices ensured that viewers outside the country enjoyed better access to the program than the Canadian taxpayers who helped fund its creation,” Michael Geist wrote in his blog.

More articles:

Guinevere Orvis at last100.com - Inside story: the making of a legal TV ‘torrent’.
Daniel Langendorf at last100.com - They’re not lying: CBC to release TV show for download, free, legal, and via BitTorrent
Cory Doctorow at BoingBoing.net - How CBC torrented a TV show