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BitTorrent Lays Off Half of Its Staff

SAN FRANCISCO — The company behind file-sharing system BitTorrent has laid off 18 employees — about half of its staff — and may drop plans to challenge iTunes with its own network.

In August, the company let go 20 percent of its workforce in August and the layoffs are “showing signs of serious trouble while [BitTorrent] tries to commercialize its technology,” according to a New York Times report.

As an open-source technology protocol, BitTorrent represents about half the world’s Internet traffic.

The future of BitTorrent Entertainment Network, once heralded as a challenger to iTunes, is uncertain. The company’s 20 employees will work on BitTorrent DNA, a content delivery network that helps media and video game companies distribute their products cheaply over the Internet.

On Friday, BitTorrent announced that it was promoting Eric Klinker, who served as chief technology officer, to CEO. The company's co-founder, Ashwin Navin, has announced he's leaving the company.

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