Dax and I created a new website for
Pwop Productions over the weekend. We are targeting PR and corporate types, to that end we've redefined our mission statement which is to provide impact.
Before podcasting can work for the masses we need tools and services. Pwop is providing both. We obviously have the services to create the content, as we've been doing for years with
.NET Rocks! , and more recently the
MSDN Academic Alliance but we are now solving the tools problem for consumers of podcasts.
You may already know that I am a huge believer in
BitTorrent being harnessed for the powers of good where podcasting is concerned. The reason podcasting with HTTP doesn't work is scalability. BitTorrent provides that scalability. The more people use it simultaneously (a la podcasting) the faster everyone gets their file(s).
We are building a client application that incorporates a complete bittorrent client stack developed by David Smith called
btsharp. This is a complete stack written in C#. He is incorporating universal plug and play UPnP to automatically configure routers to open bt ports with the user's permission. The application (called PwopCatcher) is skinnable a la
WinAmp. Pwop will offer a service of creating a custom skinned and configured version of PwopCatcher for our clients to distribute to their audience. All the client has to do is install it and they will be receiving podcasted content (audio, video, binary, etc.) using bittorrent. We are not making a replacement for Azureus. It will not have lots of configuration options in the UI. The goal is simplicity and elegance. We strongly believe that this combination of software and services is exactly what companies need to harness the power of podcasting. I'll be unveiling a beta the application for .NET Rocks! and Mondays listeners later this summer. Trust me, it will knock you out.
But alas, we are stuck with the same old problem. We have to get the word out
to corporate types about Pwop and what we can do. To that end we are embarking on a direct mail, email, and phone campaign to PR firms. Unless the
right people know about us we won't be able to change the world. Right now we are mostly on the radar screens of amateur podcasters and bloggers.
So, do you have any suggestions? I'd like very much to hear them.