An electronic file, e.g., an MP3 file, is partitioned into a sequence of segments at the server side. The first segment is played out upon downloading. While the first segment is being played out, the second is being downloaded and buffered so that it is available when the play out of the first segment is completed. While playing out a current one of the segments, next one(s) of the segments are being downloaded and buffered. This partitioning and sequential play out enables to emulate streaming of a file and to minimize latency while downloading an electronic file.