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BitTorrent Embraces Streaming Torrents, Takes uTorrent Web Out of Beta (betanews.com)
Mark Wilson shares a report from BetaNews: Acknowledging that we are now very much in the streaming age, BitTorrent has launched the first version of Torrent Web. The aim of the browser-based tool is to make torrenting as simple as possible and -- most importantly -- support torrent streaming. It remains to be seen how many people are willing to switch from a dedicated app to a browser-based torrenting experience, but the promise that you can "play while you download, no more staring at progress bars" is certainly alluring. Files are streamable near-instantly as they download, but they are also saved locally in the way you're used to. uTorrent Web is available for Chrome, Firefox, Internet Explorer, Microsoft Edge and Opera and the release finds BitTorrent partnering with Adaware to check torrents for signs of malware, and even download torrents without having to visit websites. Warning: the installer includes (optional) bundleware in the form of Adaware Internet Security and the Opera web browser.
Haven't heard of "uTorrent Web", but the protocol "TorrentWeb" (no micro/u, and no space) is completely browser based via javascript.
I guess it depends on the usage, but I know of one content producer that hosts their own videos that you can stream from a website with a more familiar youtube-like interface.
(The web software is called PeerTube if you're interested)
Though technically the viewers can aid in the torrent swarm, and probably most helpful there right after a new vid goes up, but for the most part they are the only seeds.
One annoying downside is existing torrent clients can't use the torrentweb protocol directly.
So no helping to seed with your usual seedbox, at least until they get updated to support it.
uTorrent proper has been a bloated sketchy client for some time now and I think everyone's moved on to other clients by now. uTorrent Web will likely be a still birth.
People running the heart of things behind the scene still prefer command line clients or more automated with less gui clients.
For video streaming, the main hosting site tends to have a built in player anyway so beyond seeding long term I'm not sure windows users will need much in the way of a dedicated out-of-browser client.