It's old but it's not even close to the OG. I believe the OG is newsgroups, and after that was p2p file sharing apps like limewire and napster, and only then did torrenting become a big thing

[–] MyNameIsIgglePiggle@sh.itjust.works 13 points 21 hours ago* (last edited 21 hours ago) (2 children)

I'm gonna ignore non internet based methods. Here is the evolution imo

BBS
Usenet & warez websites
Server client setups (Hotline etc)
P2P without resuming (Napster etc)
P2P W/resume & multiple sources (Kazaa, LimeWire etc)
Torrents
Streaming torrents
Usenet

Edit: I'm seeing IRC a lot, not sure where it fits in this list. Assume it's around no 2.

[–] ReallyActuallyFrankenstein@lemmynsfw.com 7 points 21 hours ago* (last edited 21 hours ago)

This is the correct list, having lived through it. BBS services in the mid-1980s were the start of Razor1911, Paradox and other distro and cracker groups. I'd edit 2 to include FTP which is what BBS evolved into with secret dropsites for new releases.

IRC is 2.5 on this list. You can group that alongside the pre-web internet services, like AOL which had slightly IRC-like chat rooms dedicated to serving warez and videos in the same way (requesting a list from a chatbot, and then requesting sequential files).

Some light history here, though like all warez-related scholarship, there's a ton missing that you had to have seen to know: