Spectrum exchange in a reconfigurable radio context

Wireless communications attract enormous research effort nowadays, since the continuous introduction of innovative services constitutes an attractive aspect for users, operators, as well as manufacturers. Moreover, the wireless world is currently witnessing the convergence of mobile communication systems and IP networks, towards a global communications system, operating over a common, wireless access infrastructure. In this context, radio spectrum is a fundamental value, required for a great variety of services, delivered via a multitude of radio access technologies (RATs). However, spectrum is underutilized, due to the fluctuations in its necessity, deriving from space and time traffic variations, combined with the insufficiency of spectrum management strategies. Consequently, novel mechanisms are required to cope with this situation. This paper presents such a mechanism, targeted mainly at network providers (NPs), helping them increase their spectrum exploitation level and also their expected revenues, contributing also in the long run to the increase in their customers´ satisfaction