Patent ID: 8515773

Claim:
A computerized method for execution by a client, the method comprising: transmitting, by the client, a request to download data, wherein said data comprises a content file; receiving identification information and data downloaded from one of a plurality of content providers storing said data, said identification information identifying said one content provider and obtained by said one content provider from an original content provider of said data, wherein a server maintains a list of the plurality of content providers that provide the content file; transmitting, to said original content provider, said identification information for said one content provider, which downloaded said data, along with payment for the download of said data; transmitting, to said original content provider, a request for a distribution tool identifying said client as an additional content provider that distributes said data to other clients; receiving said distribution tool, wherein the distribution tool includes identification information for the server and the client; applying, by the client, said distribution tool to said data to identify said client as an additional content provider prior to distributing said data to a different client, wherein the distribution tool is embedded in said data and the distribution tool is subsequently transmitted to the server by the different client after the different client downloads said data from said client, said clients are operated by users of the content file; and in response to said applying, transmitting, to the server, a request that the client is to be identified in the list of the plurality of content providers as an additional content provider that provides the content file, wherein the list of the plurality of content providers providing the content file is updated to include the client that requested and paid for said data as the additional content provider providing the content file.