Digital distribution

Digital distribution, also referred to as content delivery, online distribution, or electronic software distribution, among others, is the delivery or distribution of information or materials through digital platforms.^[1] The distribution of digital media content may be of digitized versions of analog materials, as well as other materials offered in a purely digital format, such as audio, video, e-books, video games, and other software.^[2]

The term is generally used to describe distribution over an online delivery medium, such as the Internet, thus bypassing physical distribution methods, such as paper, optical discs, and VHS videocassettes. The term online distribution is typically applied to freestanding products, with downloadable add-ons for other products are more commonly described as downloadable content. Content distributed online may be streamed or downloaded, and often consists of books, films and television programs, music, software, and video games. Streaming involves downloading and using content at a user's request, or "on-demand", rather than allowing a user to store it permanently. In contrast, fully downloading content to a hard drive or other forms of storage media may allow offline access in the future.

Specialist networks known as content delivery networks help distribute content over the Internet by ensuring both high availability and high performance.^[3] Alternative technologies for content delivery include peer-to-peer file sharing technologies. Alternatively, content delivery platforms create and syndicate content remotely, acting like hosted content management systems.

Unrelated to the above, the term "digital distribution" is also used in film distribution to describe the distribution of content through physical digital media, in opposition to distribution by analog media such as photographic film and magnetic tape (see: digital cinema).

^ Jones, Ashley P. (2023). The Routledge companion to video game studies (Second ed.). New York: Routledge, Taylor & Francis Group. ISBN 978-1000886023.
^ Hardy, Phil (20 November 2012). Download! How The Internet Transformed The Record Business. London UK: Omnibus Press. ISBN 978-0857128034.
^ "What Is a CDN? How Does a CDN work?". Cloudflare. Archived from the original on 3 June 2019. Retrieved 1 June 2019.

[1] Jones, Ashley P. (2023). The Routledge companion to video game studies (Second ed.). New York: Routledge, Taylor & Francis Group. ISBN 978-1000886023.

[2] Hardy, Phil (20 November 2012). Download! How The Internet Transformed The Record Business. London UK: Omnibus Press. ISBN 978-0857128034.

[3] "What Is a CDN? How Does a CDN work?". Cloudflare. Archived from the original on 3 June 2019. Retrieved 1 June 2019.

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