Newtella Prepares Spread of Gnutella Clone

Newtella Inc., a Saratoga based startup, today announced that it has begun operations to develop and promote software for sharing MP3 files using the Gnutella protocol. The company is hoping to lure users away from Napster by providing a simple interface to the protocol, developed by Nullsoft, Inc. earlier this year. Since AOL canned Gnutella, many independent developers have released clones, however none have been truely stable and simple enough for the novice computer user that Napster relies upon.

A beta of the software will be available for download within the next three weeks and will be open source, according to the company. The Gnutella protocol has come under fire as of late for security holes and inherent problems with the system, including bandwidth clogs. Nullsoft co-founder, Justin Frankel, has even proposed changes to the protocol in his finger updates, but futher work has been halted by parent company AOL. Do you think Gnutella will flourish or fall?
For more information, visit the Newtella Web site.