Theoretic performance analysis of cable networks with strategic subscribers

The quality of service of a computer network is greatly affected by the behavior of its participants. This paper proposes and utilizes an analytic model to study cable network performance when its participants function strategically. The model is based on game theory, system theory, and probability theory. The cable network studied is considered a multi-agent system, and the performance is evaluated with several social welfare metrics. This theoretical study concludes that the overall network performance may degrade significantly and the desired quality of service set by network service providers may not be realizable when its network participants act independently.