Exterminated by Doctor Who

Having fended off Daleks, Cybermen and giant maggots, Doctor Who has brought down his latest enemy: an Internet leaker.

The person who allegedly posted the premiere episode of the cult British TV series has been fired, according to a BBC News report. The individual fingered worked for a company that did some work for the Canadian Broadcasting Corp., a co-production partner that had a legitimate preview copy of the much-anticipated series.

Earlier this month, the first episode, "Rose," popped up on file-sharing Web sites. The sci-fi program "Doctor Who," which debuted in 1963, is making a return after going off the air in 1989, with Christopher Eccleston as the ninth space-traveling Timelord and ex-teen idolette Billie Piper as his sidekick.

The leak prompted an investigation by the BBC, which denied rumors that the episode had been sneaked out on purpose to generate viral buzz about the show's comeback this weekend. Online viral marketing campaigns, such as the "Subservient Chicken" site set up by Burger King, rely on videos and animations that ad agencies hope people will e-mail to friends.

But the "Doctor Who" distro is making a splash because U.K. broadcasters are getting worried about programs slipping out onto the Internet via networks like BitTorrent. Brits are enthusiastic downloaders of programs, according to a recent report, and account for one-fifth of all TV piracy. That's a big enough threat to send even the Doctor back into the Tardis.