TY - GEN
T1 - A duopoly pricing game for wireless IP services
AU - Inaltekin, Hazer
AU - Wexler, Tom
AU - Wicker, Stephen B.
PY - 2007
Y1 - 2007
N2 - This paper addresses the behavior of the selfish service providers in the form of IP sinks providing high-speed IP access. Service providers compete for mobile users by adjusting the price they charge for their services. Their aim is to maximize the total collected profit. Mobile users are also selfish choosing the service provider offering the best quality of service and price combination. As the service providers come closer to each other, we show the existence of three critical phase transitions in their behavior. Depending on the separation between them, there may exists a unique Nash equilibrium, or a continuum of Nash equilibria, or no Nash equilibrium. We completely characterize the pricing strategies of service providers at Nash equilibria. We also prove that the total social welfare in the presence of selfish providers is close to the maximum social welfare that can reached through non-selfish optimization.
AB - This paper addresses the behavior of the selfish service providers in the form of IP sinks providing high-speed IP access. Service providers compete for mobile users by adjusting the price they charge for their services. Their aim is to maximize the total collected profit. Mobile users are also selfish choosing the service provider offering the best quality of service and price combination. As the service providers come closer to each other, we show the existence of three critical phase transitions in their behavior. Depending on the separation between them, there may exists a unique Nash equilibrium, or a continuum of Nash equilibria, or no Nash equilibrium. We completely characterize the pricing strategies of service providers at Nash equilibria. We also prove that the total social welfare in the presence of selfish providers is close to the maximum social welfare that can reached through non-selfish optimization.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=48049116910&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1109/SAHCN.2007.4292872
DO - 10.1109/SAHCN.2007.4292872
M3 - Conference proceeding contribution
AN - SCOPUS:48049116910
SN - 978142441286
SP - 600
EP - 609
BT - 2007 4th Annual IEEE Communications Society Conference on Sensor, Mesh and Ad Hoc Communications and Networks
PB - Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE)
CY - Piscataway, NJ
T2 - 2007 4th Annual IEEE Communications Society Conference on Sensor, Mesh and Ad Hoc Communications and Networks, SECON
Y2 - 18 June 2007 through 21 June 2007
ER -