At CES this week, LimeWire announced the beta release of LimeWire 5.0, adding social networking functionality to the P2P service.

"The idea, said LimeWire CEO George SEARLE, is to add trusted context to user searches for content, given that people are more likely to want - and feel comfortable with - content from people they know," writes CNET's Daniel Terdiman. "Additionally, Searle explained that the new social features of LimeWire - which has 70 million monthly unique users and more than 5 billion queries a month - will enable people to choose whether to make files available to the public at large, or just to their friends and family."

"With companies like the RIAA and MPAA roaming the Internet looking for people to sue, many networks have resorted to invitation-only status, and offering this functionality would be a good move for LimeWire," notes TechSpot's Justin Mann.

"LimeWire's open source code is freely available to the public, and developed in part by a devoted programmer community," writes Softpedia's Filip Truta. "It is available in multiple languages, in both free and paid versions. The Basic version is free, while LimeWire Pro can be acquired for $21.95. LimeWire Pro is an enhanced version with personalized technical support."

Image above is from CNET.