Statistical resource allocation and pricing in broadband communication networks
Hongbin Ji, J.Y.N. Hui · 1996
This paper presents resource management for broadband communication networks from an economic point of view. To be specific, we consider bandwidth allocation and buffer dimensioning. A pricing scheme is also proposed to be dependent on the amount of allocated bandwidth and buffer. First, we exploit the utility function to represent satisfaction level of a user who requests a certain type of connection service from the network. Then we address the problem of how to allocate bandwidth and buffer capacity of one network component into virtual paths (VPs). On the one hand, the problem is formulated as a non-cooperative K-person game. Two cases, namely unconstrained and constrained, are considered. On the other hand, the problem may be formulated as a cooperative game. The objective is to find an optimal resource allocation such that the total utility of one network component will be maximized. Alternatively the objective is to maximize the minimum utility among Ws. It is shown that these two game problems may have the same solution for unconstrained case.