A system is provided for peer-to-peer messaging. The system includes a
first client machine which may transmit a sequence of messages related to
a subject. The transmission of each message can be in the form of
multicast delivery or reliable unicast delivery. At least one second
client machine communicates with the first client machine. Each such
second client machine may receive at least a portion of the sequence of
messages transmitted in the multicast form of delivery from the first
client machine, and determines if there is an interest in the subject of
the sequence of messages. The second client machine may determine if any
messages in the sequence have not been received if there is an interest,
and can transmit a request for re-transmission to the first client
machine. The request identifies any messages of the sequence that were
not received so that such messages can be re-transmitted by the first
client machine to the at least one second client machine in the form of
reliable unicast delivery.