Google patents new bandwidth bidding system

Google patents new bandwidth bidding system

A new patent, awarded to search engine giant Google on 1 May, could see it auctioning off bandwidth for use with specific devices for specific purposes.

The revolutionary system could see businesses and consumer bidding on bandwidth to allow them to download a movie or allow for remote working for a limited period.

The idea would be to make more bandwidth available to people when they needed it. The costs are likely to be higher during peak periods and it will be sold off cheaply in the middle of the night, for example.

The model also includes a facility for selecting different network speeds priced at different levels. As a result, higher quality media streaming would be priced at a higher price point than lower quality streaming that might be suitable for certain projects.

Analysis from Smartplanet claimed that the patent could lead to bandwidth being bundled with applications, keeping the costs more controllable for users. As it stands, users could be paying more than they need for apps. In the future people will only need to pay for the bandwidth they need.

The auction bidding system could also help operators handle demand for bandwidth during particularly busy periods. Through adopting an intelligent pricing model, operators could gain more control over the distribution of bandwidth over their networks.

One of the other major advantages to this form of bidding system would be tying in with algorithms to enable the provision of bandwidth to respond to environmental conditions instinctively.

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