BitTorrent is practically synonymous with digital piracy, but the file sharing protocol has plenty of legal uses as well. In fact, a leaked draft presentation from about a decade ago shows that Sony Pictures actually fiddled around with the idea of trying to acquire BitTorrent, as well as other companies such as Netflix and TiVo. While the reasons for the potential acquisition weren’t mentioned in detail, Sony Pictures considered it an effort to diversify and facilitate growth.
In Hollywood, BitTorrent is often framed as a threat due to its pirate stigma, but the technology also offers opportunities. BitTorrent Inc, the company behind the popular uTorrent software, helps artists to legally distribute their work to millions of people every year. TF can now reveal that Sony Pictures’ interest in the technology was so concrete that the movie studio listed it as a potential acquisition. In a draft presentation from early 2006 BitTorrent flanks other buying opportunities such as TiVo and Netflix. The Sony presentation discusses options to “refine” its business and saw BitTorrent as a potential candidate to diversify. Among other things, buying BitTorrent could improve margins and facilitate growth. To accomplish this goal Sony could invest $2 to $4 billion dollars, certainly enough to buy BitTorrent. Even Netflix, which didn’t offer video streaming yet, was within reach based on a $1.2 billion valuation at the time.
