How does Kazaa work? What is Peer-To-Peer?

Kazaa uses peer-to-peer technology. This means that individual users connect to each other directly, without need for a central point of management.

A user downloads and installs Kazaa and it will automatically connect to other Kazaa users.

For example Peter downloads Kazaa and installs it onto his computer. Mary also has Kazaa installed on her computer. Peter uses Kazaa to search for a file he is looking for. Kazaa finds the file on Mary’s computer. Peter can now download the file directly from Mary.

The Kazaa Media Desktop software allows users to:

• Search and download content that is shared by premium content providers or by other Kazaa users.
  
• ‘Kreate’ files and distribute them using Kazaa by placing them in their shared folder.

The peer-to-peer searches occur through users with fast connections, called Supernodes. Once located, the file is sourced for downloading directly from the user who has it.

Sharman Networks emphasise the importance of users carefully choosing which files they share. We clearly state that users should not share files which are personal, such as financial information, or which you do not have the right to distribute.

For more information on how Sharman Networks communicates to users about peer-to-peer, please visit the guide on the Kazaa website.