Title: "Potentials and Limits of Cooperation in Wireless Communications Toward 4G Wireless"

Authors: Frattasi, S., and Gimmler, A., Guest Editors

Reference: Cooperation in Fourth Generation Wireless: Special Issue, IEEE Technology and Society, Spring 2008, pp. 8-12

Summary:
To cooperate out of altruism, happens, but not often. We cooperate because through cooperation we can achieve better results and because  we expect others to do the same. Called "Reciprocity" by Sociologist H. Bekcer, it is also called "Tit for tat" in game theory  and is a successful strategy for winning. Expect a visionary paper on "Technologies of Cooperation" by H. Rheingold, A. Saveri and K. Vian, this summer 2008 in this journal. Axelrod, a game theorist, claims that   cooperation can indeed emerge from self-oriented maximizers in this egoistic world. Game theory has developed several models, such as the Prisoner's Dilemma, theChicken's Game, or the Tragedy of Commons, to understand behaviors and background motivations of interacting human beings. How can cooperation translate to the wireless communication domain? The technical structure behind wireless communication limits cooperation. Pricing, control, and coordination administered by operators and service providers will either encourage or sabotage cooperative networks. Cooperative strategies will become an essential ingredient of the new generation of communication technologies.

Keywords: Ad-hoc, Optimization, Game Theory, Wireless, Cooperation