BBC and Azureus announce legal downloads of Dr Who

BBC Worldwide has struck a licensing deal with popular bit-torrent provider Azureus to distribute legal episodes of Doctor Who to United States users early next year. The programme will be one of a number of high profile BBC titles available via Azureus' new Zudeo client software. The deal marks a significant first step for the broadcaster in Peer-to-Peer distribution.

Which episodes will be carried, and what costs will be involved, has yet to be announced. The current series is airing in the US on the Sci-Fi Channel, BBC America and soon in select markets on PBS. The classic series is airing only in a few US markets.

This story is being reported by Wired.com. Thanks to Panodk from our forum for the initial link to Business Wire'sreport.

Update, Dec 20th: Further news links on this story: BBC News and The Guardian.