Provide Broadband Services Research Articles

The Welfare Impacts of Broadband Network Management: Can Broadband Service Providers Be Trusted?

The extent to which broadband Internet service providers can engage in reasonable traffic management when faced with potentially congestion-causing applications like BitTorrent or other file-sharing applications is currently the subject of heated debate. This Paper provides a formal economic analysis of the likely welfare consequences of broadband Internet network management that is directed at controlling network congestion. We show that it is socially desirable to charge a congestion premium or utilize other traffic management techniques when congestion-causing applications impose a congestion externality and degrade the experience of other users. The most efficient traffic management actions would be targeted at applications that cause congestion externalities and not upon all applications generally. The model also suggests congestion externalities caused by applications may vary depending upon network capacity constraints and protocols. As a result, assessment of the reasonableness of network management practices is most logical on a case-by-case basis rather than imposition of a single bright-line test. Instead, our model indicates that if it is shown that a congestion externality is present and that a traffic management tool directly remedies that externality, it is appropriate to presume that this type of traffic management by a private firm is legitimate and welfare enhancing.

Interoperability between WiMAXand broadband mobile space networks [topics in radio communications

In several countries manufacturers, operators, and public authorities look at WiMAX system as a viable technology to fill the digital divide, providing broadband services mainly in suburban and rural areas, but also in densely populated areas. Nevertheless, as a standalone system it will never offer global services, and to complement its capabilities, the utilization of broadband space-based access shared among users represents a scalable and cost-effective solution to offer wider area coverage, improved performance in terms of QoS, service continuity in case of terrestrial network failure, and long-range user mobility. Integration between WiMAX and a space-based infrastructure, composed of a combination of satellites and high altitude platforms, can be pursued in several ways. The simplest solution is based on connecting a WiMAX network by means of a terrestrial network terminating at a hub station connected to the space infrastructure. A more flexible solution should allow the WiMAX subscriber station or base station to directly access the space infrastructure. This article addresses the identification of suitable scenarios and a feasibility analysis presenting link budget results related to a subset of the identified solutions.

Entry Threat and Entry Deterrence: The Timing of Broadband Rollout

Past empirical literature provides strong evidence that competition increases when new firms enter a market. However, rarely have economists been able to examine how competition changes with the threat of entry. This paper uses the evolution of the zip code level market structure of facilities-based broadband providers from 1999 to 2004 to investigate how a firm adjusts its entry strategy when facing the threat of additional entrants. We identify the potential entrant into a local market as threatened when a neighboring market houses more than firms providing broadband services. We first document that such a market is more likely to accommodate more than firms in the long run. Taking account of endogeneity of entry into neighboring markets, we find that the first 1 to 3 entrants significantly delay their entrance into an open local market facing entry threat. We do not find evidence of delayed entry for firms following the 3rd entrant. The evidence suggests that the mere threat of entry may curb market power associated with oligopolistic market structure.

Network Neutrality and Foreclosing Market Exchange: Transaction Cost Analysis

In this Policy Paper, we analyze the effects of proposals that seek to mandate an inflexible set of rules that would foreclose or severely limit many market transactions. Our model reveals that under plausible conditions, rules that prohibit efficient commercial transactions between content and broadband service providers could, in fact, be bad for all participants: consumers would pay higher prices, the profits of the broadband service provider would decline, and the sales of Internet content providers would also decline. Moreover, rules that prohibit the market from contracting efficiently may shift sales from content providers to the broadband provider's content affiliate, a result entirely inconsistent with the stated desire of network neutrality proponents. As the model shows, these unintended consequences of such network neutrality rules are the result of shifting costs to consumers that are more efficiently borne in the exchange between content and broadband providers. While proponents of such regulation may view it as protection from alleged anticompetitive behavior by broadband service providers, such proposals also eliminate the potential for efficient, voluntary, welfare-improving market transactions.

University of Florida Study Shows Only Winners from Network Neutrality Regulation to Be Content Providers, Consumers Lose

This month, three professors at the University of Florida's Warrington College of Business Administration released a new paper on the effects of network neutrality regulation using a stylized game-theoretic model (the Study). This analytical investigation of network neutrality is certainly a welcome addition to the debate, which has primarily been driven by emotion. But the conclusions of the Florida Study have been grossly misconstrued by network neutrality proponents, who have seized upon them in claiming that the study shows that the with Net Neutrality is unequivocally better for consumers. Even a casual read of the Florida Study shows that those claims are entirely false. In fact, the Florida Study clearly shows that under no circumstances will consumer welfare be improved by network neutrality regulation. In fact, the Florida Study suggests that the only winners from network neutrality regulation will be the Internet content providers - with broadband service providers and consumers being worse off (or, in some cases, unaffected). Policymakers should therefore not be misled as to what the Florida Study actually says and should pay heed to the warnings that lie beneath the patina of overzealous advocacy.

The Debate on Net Neutrality: A Policy Perspective

The status quo of prohibiting broadband service providers from charging websites for preferential access to their customers—the bedrock principle of net neutrality (NN)—is under fierce debate. We develop a game-theoretic model to address two critical issues of NN: (1) Who are gainers and losers of abandoning NN? (2) Will broadband service providers have greater incentive to expand their capacity without NN? We find that if the principle of NN is abolished, the broadband service provider stands to gain from the arrangement, as a result of extracting the preferential access fees from content providers. Content providers are thus left worse off, mirroring the stances of the two sides in the debate. Depending on parameter values in our framework, consumer surplus either does not change or is higher in the short run. When compared to the baseline case under NN, social welfare in the short run increases if one content provider pays for preferential treatment but remains unchanged if both content providers pay. Finally, we find that the incentive to expand infrastructure capacity for the broadband service provider and its optimal capacity choice under NN are higher than those under the no-net-neutrality (NNN) regime, except in some specific cases. Under NN, the broadband service provider always invests in broadband infrastructure at the socially optimal level but either under- or overinvests in infrastructure capacity in the absence of NN.

Managing Ethernet aggregation networks for fast moving users

Delivering broadband services to fast moving users (e.g., in trains) involves both wired and wireless networks. In this article we demonstrate that a hierarchical wired Ethernet aggregation network in combination with Ethernet-based wireless access networks is an interesting approach for realizing broadband access to fast moving users. The focus of the article is on fast and autonomie setup and removal of tunnels in the Ethernet aggregation network for providing broadband services to trains. The resulting moving tunnels realize seamless connectivity for the users on a train with an efficient resource reservation in the aggregation network, A hybrid approach is presented, which allows tunnel-setup times to be minimized and provides accurate tunnel-setup triggers. A testbed has been set up to evaluate the hybrid approach and the results of this work are intended to be used as a guideline for network service providers on how to set up an Ethernet-based aggregation network for fast moving users

A spatial taxonomy of broadband regions in the United States

The steady growth of broadband penetration in the United States is indicative of a major shift in advanced data services and last-mile infrastructure in the deregulated telecommunication environment. Although there are concerns with the equitable provision of broadband services in urban, rural and remote areas, the diffusion process has also created a unique landscape of broadband availability that reflects elements of competition, federal policy, local government initiatives, technological limitations and location. This paper explores the dynamic and diverse spatial landscape of broadband availability in the United States at the zip code level, for 2004. In addition, this study provides a multivariate, spatial taxonomy of broadband regions, highlighting their socioeconomic and demographic differences.

Network Neutrality and Industry Structure

One of the most heated debates in the current efforts to re-write the Communications Act has been whether the federal government should impose requirements on broadband service providers. While we argue neither for nor against the need for Network Neutrality legislation in this article, our analysis shows that policymakers should avoid Network Neutrality mandates that have the intent or effect of commoditizing broadband access services since such a policy approach is likely to deter facilities-based competition, reduce the expansion and deployment of advanced communications networks, and increase prices. Given the economic characteristics of local communications networks, policies that promote commoditization of broadband access could lead to the monopoly provision of advanced broadband services in many markets. This outcome would harm consumers substantially.

Economists' Statement on U.S. Broadband Policy

Broadband, or high-speed access to the Internet, has generated significant economic benefits. Certain regulations, however, are slowing investment and deterring entry into the broadband market. In this statement, we make two recommendations that would remedy these regulatory defects and thereby lower artificial barriers to competitive provision of broadband services.

The family purchasing process of broadband internet in Australia

This study investigates the purchasing process of broadband internet in Australian families. The study was motivated by the question of why broadband adoption rate is low in Australia. Broadband as a telecommunication service is used collectively by family members. Therefore, we interviewed 15 families. From the content analysis of interview data, we developed the Family Broadband Purchasing Process model which maps the critical events, the interplay of family roles and influencing factors that lead to the decision to purchase broadband. The findings can help broadband service providers to leverage their marketing strategies in countries of low broadband take-up.

Price, Programming and Potential Competition in US Cable Television Markets

Potential competition in the US cable television industry is empirically examined for 385 markets. Predicted entry probabilities are included in a supply-demand model to permit empirical investigation of the effect of potential competition on incumbent cable operator’s price and channel programming decisions. Estimation results show incumbents offer more channels to consumers in markets facing greater potential competition from broadband service provider (BSP) wireline overbuilders and/or incumbent local exchange carriers. In particular, when the probability of entry rises to about 42 the average cable system provides six more channels, and price per channel declines from US$ 0.77 to US$ 0.66.

Client architecture for MPEG-4 streaming

As Web-based services increasingly include streaming media, broadband service providers must address the challenges inherent in the real-time delivery of high-bandwidth content over a best-effort network. The Multilevel Buffer Architecture is a buffering mechanism for MPEG-4 decoder players, providing a set of services for accommodating network jittering, precise A/V sync, and QoS management.

Site diversity against rain fading in LMDS systems

Local Multipoint Distribution Services (LMDS) system is a fixed cellular radio based point-to-multipoint technology in the microwave band providing broadband services. These systems need very accurate network planning method because of the variable carrier-to-interference ratio (C/I) in the whole service area and high sensitivity for meteorological phenomena especially for precipitation. The effects of a moving rain cell over an LMDS system was analyzed and site diversity as one possible countermeasure technique is demonstrated. The location dependent C/I in the LMDS service area under rainy conditions with and without site diversity technique was calculated applying a rain shower profile.

Inequities in the broadband revolution

Residential broadband options such as cable and digital subscriber lines are growing in popularity. However, evidence suggests that urban areas are receiving the majority of infrastructure investment, thereby leaving many rural locations with few options for broadband access. With access to telecommunication infrastructure becoming an increasingly important component to local economic development, issues of infrastructure equity are significant. This paper explores telecommunication equity and its effect on economic development by addressing the impact of geography on infrastructure investment and growth. A comprehensive database of broadband service providers and data from the Ecom-Ohio project (http://www.ecom-ohio.org), are used to explore broadband access options in the state of Ohio by examining the characteristics of market demand that are driving cable and digital subscriber line infrastructure investment. In addition, this paper develops an explanatory framework for identifying key market characteristics indicative of demand for residential broadband services through the use of statistical models and a geographic information system. Results suggest that income, education, age, location, and competition from alternative broadband platforms influence digital subscriber line infrastructure investment.

Q-Win --- A New Admission and Handoff Management Scheme for Multimedia LEO Satellite Networks

Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellite networks are deployed as an enhancement to terrestrial wireless networks in order to provide broadband services to users regardless of their location. In addition to global coverage, these satellite systems support communications with hand-held devices and offer low cost-per-minute access cost, making them promising platform for Personal Communication Services (PCS). LEO satellites are expected to support multimedia traffic and to provide their users with the negotiated Quality of Service (QoS). However, the limited bandwidth of the satellite channel, satellite rotation around the Earth and mobility of end-users makes QoS provisioning and mobility management a challenging task. One important mobility problem is the intra-satellite handoff management. The main contribution of this work is to propose Q-Win, a novel call admission and handoff management scheme for LEO satellite networks. A key ingredient in our scheme is a companion predictive bandwidth allocation strategy that exploits the topology of the network and contributes to maintaining high bandwidth utilization. Our bandwidth allocation scheme is specifically tailored to meet the QoS needs of multimedia connections. The performance of Q-Win is compared to that of two recent schemes proposed in the literature. Simulation results show that our scheme offers low call dropping probability, providing for reliable handoff of on-going calls, good call blocking probability for new call requests, while maintaining bandwidth utilization high.

Broadband satellite system technologies for effective use of the 12-30 GHz radio spectrum

Broadband satellite systems are an integral part of communications technology, aiming to provide a wide range of services to a society that increasingly expects ubiquitous access to broadband telecommunication services. Key drivers behind the development of these systems include rapid growth in the use of the Internet, PC- and TV-based e-commerce and interactive broadcasting services. In the UK, broadband satellite service trials are currently being conducted by BT, amongst others, with a primary objective of providing services to areas where asymmetric digital subscriber line (ADSL) technology has not been deployed. Two key factors for the success of broadband satellite technology lie in the area of overcoming constraints associated with frequency spectrum and orbital resources. This paper provides a review of technologies employed in geostationary (GSO) and nongeostationary (NGSO) satellite networks designed for the provision of broadband services to fixed and portable ground terminals within the 12 to 30 GHz frequency range. After reviewing the system design parameters related to the use of the radio frequency spectrum, consideration is given to the issues involved in sharing spectrum between GSO and NGSO satellite networks.

Loop cancellation and path optimization of path extension handover in mobile ATM services

There has been increasing interest in providing broadband services. Wireless ATM will be used to support broadband services in future generation mobile communications. We have studied how to treat the loop cancellation and path optimization of the path extension handover scheme. In this paper, we present path optimization algorithms as a means to effect this treatment; they are polygonal loop cancellation and trigonal loop cancellation. We express the location of the mobile terminal (MT) by direction angles, which we convert into direction vectors. Using these direction vectors, we can ascertain the optimal path of the MT. We compare the proposed scheme with the anchor rerouting scheme in average handover delay, communication disruption delay, buffer requirements, and the total time used for exchanging signalling messages.

Multimedia Satellite Networks and TCP/IP Traffic Transport

To meet an increasing demand for multimedia services and electronic connectivity across the world, satellite networks will play an indispensable role in the deployment of global networks. A number of satellite communication systems have been proposed using geosynchronous (GEO) satellites, medium earth orbit (MEO) and low earth orbit (LEO) constellations operating in the Ka-band and above. At these frequencies, satellite networks are able to provide broadband services requiring wider bandwidth than the current services at C or Ku-band. Most of the next-generation broadband satellite systems will use ATM or "ATM-like" switching with onboard processing to provide full two-way services to and from earth stations. The new services gaining momentum include mobile services, private intranets, and high-data-rate internet access carried over integrated satellite-fiber networks. Several performance issues need to be addressed before a transport layer protocol like TCP can satisfactorily work over satellite ATM for large delay-bandwidth networks. The authors review the proposed satellite systems and discuss challenges such as traffic management and QoS requirements for broadband satellite ATM networks. The performance results of TCP enhancements for Unspecified Bit Rate over ATM (ATM-UBR+) for large bandwidth-delay environments with various end system policies and drop policies for several buffer sizes are presented.

Stream traffic management over an ATM passive optical network

Several alternatives based either on wired or wireless infrastructures are considered for the provision of broadband services in the local loop. In the field of wired solutions, Passive Optical Networks (PON) look very promising due to their bandwidth capacity. Also called APONs (ATM over PON), PON systems are designed in order to satisfy end-to-end ATM connections. Because it is based on a point-to-multipoint optical tree configuration, a PON access system requires a MAC protocol for the upstream traffic. Two approaches may be adopted for the design of an APON MAC protocol. The first approach considers a MAC protocol based on a work-conserving discipline combined with a stand-alone traffic shaper between the head of the optical tree and an ATM switch. The second approach consists in an integrated mechanism able to reduce Cell Delay Variation (CDV) of CBR/VBR connections by means of non-work conserving disciplines at the MAC layer. After having described the main characteristics of APON systems, we propose a new APON MAC protocol with integrated shaping well suited to real time traffic management. The performances of our protocol are investigated by means of both computer simulations and analytical modeling. By extension of our analytical study, a Call Admission Control procedure is proposed for real time VBR connections.