Wireless Social Community Networks: A Game-Theoretic Analysis

Wireless social community networks formed by users with a Wi-Fi access point have been created as an alternative to traditional wireless networks that operate in the licensed spectrum. By relying on access points owned by users for access, wireless community networks provide a wireless infrastructure in an inexpensive way. However, the coverage of such a network is limited by the set of users who open their access points to the social community. Currently, it is not clear to what degree this paradigm can serve as a replacement, or a complimentary service, of existing centralized networks operating in licensed bands.