Doctor Who is on BitTorrent. But this time, it’s the BBC that has put it there.

The broadcaster’s BBC Worldwide division is releasing an official digital box-set of 10 episodes from its popular sci-fi show’s modern incarnation.

It will be distributed as a free “bundle” through BitTorrent’s file-sharing network, with an introductory video from current Doctor, Peter Capaldi, and a 10-minute preview of Rose, the first episode from the modern Doctor Who era.

Fans will be able to download or stream both, but will have to pay $12 to unlock the rest of the bundle, including the 10 episodes – strictly speaking 12, since a couple are two-parters.

Those episodes include Rose, The Empty Child / The Doctor Dances, The Girl in the Fireplace, Blink, The End of Time, The Vampires of Venice, The Doctor’s Wife, The Rings of Akhaten, The Day of the Doctor, and Listen.

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Fans who pay will also get five more video introductions from Capaldi, and 2014 documentary Doctor Who: Earth Challenge which saw Capaldi and co-star Jenna Coleman travel the world meeting Who fans.

The Doctor Who bundle follows in the footsteps of musician Thom Yorke, who released his last album Tomorrow’s Modern Boxes as a BitTorrent bundle in September 2014, with one free song and video, then a $6 payment to unlock the full album.

“Our entire mission is to get content out legitimately to as many fans as we can around the world. We’re in a lot of territories, but we’re not everywhere, and not everybody has access to paid-for TV,” Julia Kenyon, director of drama brands at BBC Worldwide, told the Guardian in an interview.

“This is a really lovely way to extend it even further so that more of our fans can get our content. We have quite a young audience. They’re very digital-savvy, and a lot of them access content in the digital space, so understanding their habits, and going where they are is very important for us.”

As in the case of Tomorrow’s Modern Boxes, fans will be able to stream the Doctor Who bundle’s free portion online, from its embedded widget, but will have to install BitTorrent’s software to download the full bundle.

BitTorrent’s file-sharing technology has become synonymous with piracy in many people’s minds, because it has been used by many services where internet users share copyrighted music, films, TV shows and software illegally.

The US-based company has been working hard over the last couple of years to convince media companies and creators that its network of 170 million file-sharers can be a powerful legal distribution channel, through its bundles.

Yorke’s was the first BitTorrent bundle to use a “pay-gate” to charge fans, but before that the technology was used by other musicians, including Public Enemy, Moby, De La Soul and Diplo, as well as Madonna (for a documentary film rather than music) and author Tim Ferriss – with fans unlocking their bundles by registering their email addresses.

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“The BBC are very curious about technology, and they’re not scared of it. They weren’t scared about what they may have heard about the word ‘BitTorrent’ before. The BBC, and lots of people, are ready to listen,” said Matt Mason, chief content officer at BitTorrent.

“Everything BitTorrent stands for in the popular imagination seems directly opposed to what content creators stand for, yet they’re trying to work with content creators,” Nick Coulter, head of digital, western Europe for BBC Worldwide, told the Guardian.

“The whole question of what happens with peer-to-peer sites is very difficult to tackle, but BitTorrent are one of the few companies trying to do something pro-active about it.”

BBC Worldwide – with Capaldi’s input – has carefully chosen the 10 episodes for the bundle as a way in to the modern incarnation of Doctor Who, which was relaunched in 2005.

“There’s been a lot of involvement from the Doctor Who team about what should be in. This is not someone from the marketing team reorganising stuff and putting out a Greatest Hits album,” said Mason.

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