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Everything about Quanteec peer-assisted delivery.

Installation, supported players and devices, what the SDK does, how delivery is monitored, and the proof behind it, all in one place.

Viewers share pieces of the stream. Nothing else.

Peer-assisted delivery moves one thing between viewers: encrypted segments of the stream they are already watching, while they are watching it. No account data, no personal files, nothing about who is watching. Here is what it asks of their device, and what it doesn’t.

Yes, it uses their upload bandwidth…

Upload is the path from the device to the Internet, the opposite of the download that brings the video. Most of the time it sits idle, unless the viewer is on a video call or playing a game. Quanteec uses that idle share.

…but only when it is free.

Their own traffic always comes first: calls, uploads and games get the bandwidth before we do. Sharing is off by default on cellular networks.

Just watching. The idle share of their upload helps deliver the stream to other people watching it.

On a call or a game. Quanteec steps back. Their own traffic gets the bandwidth first, automatically.

Illustration of the priority rule, not measured telemetry.

Yes, it uses a little power…

While they watch, the device forwards small pieces of the stream to nearby viewers. That takes some extra work, and some battery on mobile.

…but the impact is unnoticeable.

At most 3% of CPU and under 0.1 Wh per GB sent: less than €1 a year on an electricity bill. On mobile, at most 0.40% of additional battery use, and sharing stops below 10% battery.

Safeguards

  • On their disk

    Nothing is stored, nothing is accessed.

  • On air only

    Sharing happens only while they watch, and stops when playback ends.

  • On safety

    Segments stay encrypted and cannot be altered or corrupted. On their transmission, they can be even more secured than from your CDN (see advanced security settings).

  • On quality

    The picture they receive from other viewers is the same as from your CDN.

  • On control

    Inform viewers with a line in your terms of use, or give them an on/off switch in your app. Both are used in production, and we recommend the switch. With StreamBoost, keeping it on can be rewarded.

  • On GDPR

    Fully GDPR compliant. Ask us for more information.

Peer-assisted delivery vs the alternatives.

High-level comparison. Quanteec is designed to layer on top of your CDN, not to replace it.

Peer-assisted delivery is a software layer that runs inside your video player. Over WebRTC, the player exchanges already-cached media segments directly with nearby players running the same stream, while your CDN stays the source of truth and the fallback. The Quanteec SDK decides, segment by segment, whether to fetch from a peer or from the CDN, so delivery capacity grows along with the audience - no need for additional infrastructure.

Quanteec P2P vs

The pros and cons.

Peer-assisted delivery is powerful, but it is not magic. Here is the straight version.

What you gain

  • Typically 80%+ CDN offload, rising with concurrency and content type: the peak share is carried peer-to-peer.
  • Cost savings across Capex, Opex and Netex: you provision less, operate less and move less data over the network.
  • Elastic capacity to absorb traffic surges: it grows instantly with the audience, with zero infrastructure to deploy or maintain.
  • More robust delivery under load: audience surges and CDN incidents stop being a fire drill, so the tech team can relax on event day.
  • Built-in Player-level Observability: a QoE metrics dashboard with CDN vs P2P comparison.
  • Built-in CDN Selector: each segment is routed to the best path, at the player level.
  • Built-in Security: encrypted segments, session-bound tokens over TLS, and your DRM workflow untouched.
  • Built-in Energy Saving Mechanism: lower delivery energy, with the same or better QoE.
  • Built-in Viewer Engagement: reward participation with StreamBoost. See StreamBoost.

What to plan for

  • Offload needs concurrency: small or long-tail audiences see limited benefit.
  • Mobile-heavy audiences see less offload: viewers on cellular networks are usually set as only receivers.
  • Device coverage varies: WebRTC support differs across older TVs, STBs and consoles.
  • A CDN is still required for the first viewers, locked-down networks and as fallback.
  • Each new player version may require an updated SDK.

We have a strong experience in device and player integration. We run a methodical onboarding to help you reach production fast, in a safe and efficient way.

Not real drawbacks: myths from old P2P

Today’s peer-assisted streaming is not the old P2P. Each common objection, next to what Quanteec does instead.

MythReality

Hard to integrate in the player

Teams expect weeks of custom work, forks and fragile changes to their video stack.

Drop-in SDK with clear docs

Quanteec plugs into the player with a few lines of configuration. No CDN or DNS changes. Compatible with HLS, DASH, DRM, analytics and existing ops, with detailed docs, a step-by-step process and guided support.

P2P is not safe and may breach security

Old peer-to-peer meant open ports and uncontrolled sharing, so teams assume encryption and DRM will break.

Security and DRM stay intact

Quanteec encrypts chunks, uses session-bound tokens over TLS and respects your DRM workflow. Peers never see decrypted media. It acts as a secured extension of your CDN edge, not an exposure point, and runs GDPR-compliant: peers exchange only encrypted media segments, never personal data.

P2P strains ISPs and creates bottlenecks

Extra uplink will clog last-mile links, and a bad peer will slow everyone else.

Network-aware and self-optimizing

Quanteec selects close, healthy peers, throttles rates and reroutes on loss. Local exchange eases backhaul, so hotspots dissolve instead of forming.

P2P is resource-heavy and intrusive

A heavy app that installs services, eats CPU, drains battery and seeds in the background.

Lightweight and policy-aware

Quanteec abides by operator policies: caps upload rate, minimises its footprint, prefers local or Wi-Fi, pauses on low battery or poor conditions and stops when playback ends. No background seeding.

Viewers pay for your upload

Teams worry about extra uplink costs and unhappy users.

Modern networks are built for two-way use

Video calls, gaming and social apps already use uplink. Quanteec keeps usage modest and configurable (Wi-Fi-only, rate limits, regional rules). In return, viewers get steadier quality, and platforms can add rewards through StreamBoost if desired.

P2P must add delay to re-stream between viewers

More hops must mean higher latency and poor live sync.

Ultra-low-latency, fully supported

Quanteec works with LL-HLS, LL-DASH, CMAF and WebRTS when needed. Peers fetch fast and re-stream almost instantly, keeping live within ULL targets, down to under 2s end-to-end in production.

Integration at the player level, then validation.

A quick player-side integration, then a careful validation phase.

Open each step:

One of our three SDKs - Web, Android or iOS - inside the video player you already run. No new infrastructure to deploy.

Where the SDK sits.

The Quanteec SDK sits inside your existing player and works with your CDN and DRM stack. No infrastructure changes, no lock-in, no blind routing decisions.

Supported players, devices and protocols.

One peer-assisted layer, three SDKs: Web, Android and iOS. Below, the players and devices supported per SDK, with your CDN and DRM stack kept exactly as it is.

Protocols: HLS / LL-HLS DASH / LL-DASH WebRTS
DAI supported: SSAI SGAI CSAI

P2P plugin

Environments in production

Chrome Firefox Safari Edge

Computers and mobile devices

Tizen LG webOS Vidaa Titan

Smart TVs

Players in production

hls.js

dash.js

video.js

Bradmax

Bitmovin

Shaka

Light inside the player, secure by design.

It installs inside your player, so there is nothing else to deploy. Three SDKs cover every surface, Web, Android and iOS, and the layer is light enough to run continuously and absorb traffic peaks, while your CDN stays in place as the safety net.

Light on every device

  • Web SDK300 to 400 kB
  • Android SDK450 kB
  • iOS SDK1.3 MB

CPU stays close to flat: around +0% while receiving and up to +3% while sending (iOS +1.5% / +3.5%). Memory is programmable, the network footprint is configurable, and delivery uses at least 4x less energy than a CDN path.

A secured extension of your CDN

  • AES-encryption compliant, with token, cookie and A/B watermarking support, and GDPR respected.
  • Session-bound peer access over secure connections, while your DRM workflow stays unchanged.
  • Peers never access decrypted media, with an optional anti-leeching layer in cooperation with Nagra.

No meaningful added latency

  • Works with low-latency HLS, DASH and WebRTS, down to under 2 seconds end-to-end.
  • Instant fallback to the CDN when a peer is slow: an HTTP Range request fetches only the bytes still missing, so the download resumes without starting over.
  • A tighter latency target simply leaves more to the CDN, with playback unaffected.

The delivery decision layer, made visible.

Monitor CDN versus peer-assisted delivery, QoE, offload and segment routing at player level. Every decision is traceable by stream, event and viewer.

A back office configured to your rules, no stack changes

Identify and manage streams by site, location (city, region or country), IP, domain, popularity, network and device type, then apply operator policies such as device and upload caps, rules for metered networks or low battery, and geographic constraints, all without touching your encoding or CDN stack.

Fully API based

Automate configuration, feed these metrics into your own observability stack, and embed delivery tests into CI/CD.

P2P at the core. Additional services, same SDK.

Peer-assisted delivery and player-level observability are included in the standard service. Premium services are activated through the same SDK and priced separately.

Your CDN Source & fallback Player Player Player Verified segments, shared between players

Share segments. Grow delivery.

Players exchange verified segments while your CDN stays the source and fallback.

P2P by default. The best CDN when needed.

P2P is used by default. If P2P is unavailable, or if a CDN performs better than P2P, delivery uses a CDN. The CDN Selector then sends each request to the best-performing CDN for that viewer at that moment. Everything runs inside the Quanteec SDK, so decisions are based on what the player actually receives, not on regional averages or DNS rules, and there is nothing extra to deploy.

Same model as a CDN, a smaller bill.

Same model as your CDN: you pay for the traffic delivered. The difference: the peak share that would have hit your CDN originally is now carried peer-to-peer by Quanteec at a much lower rate. You pay Quanteec out of the CDN savings, so your total delivery cost drops consequently.

Measured in production, at player level.

More than two years of peer-assisted delivery across demanding live events: sports, news and large-audience FAST. The proof is measured at player level, in offload, extra capacity and QoE metrics.

Latest highlight
Roland-Garros 2026 France Télévisions · live + FAST · 18 May to 7 June 2026
Measured

CDN offload

82%

at peak, 18% on the CDN

Extra capacity factor

×6.34Max

peers on top of the CDN, carrying the peak

Rebuffering rate

0.27%

P2P, vs 0.51% on CDN only

Delivery energy

−46%

vs CDN only, same or better QoE

Measured during the event. Results vary by event, audience and content.

Use cases, by the event.

Click any event to see how Quanteec delivered it: the technology used and the numbers behind it.

Quanteec is the peer-assisted delivery provider for

And also trusted by
  • Mediactive Group
  • Castr
  • Viewsurf
  • Sparkup
  • Sportall
  • Artear
Verified in production across national live events

Energy is a delivery metric.

Peer-assisted delivery can reduce energy drawn across the delivery chain. Track delivery efficiency in the dashboard alongside offload and data volume.

50%
less energy on delivery
vs CDN-only for the same streams
80%+
CDN offload at peak
fewer CDN requests, less infrastructure load
Methodology
Ask for methodology
Greentech Innovation Label · French government · 2025
Member of Greening of Streaming (GoS)

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Review the integration path See proof at scale