Mobile Internet in Stereo: An End-to-End Scenario

Multipath TCP (MPTCP) is an extension to regular TCP that exploits the idea of resource pooling by transmitting the data of a single TCP connection simultaneously across multiple Internet paths between two end hosts. Operating system vendors are traditionally in the key position to facilitate the deployment of new functionality, such as MPTCP, to user devices, but their motivation to invest in such enhancements is not self-evident. A scenario in which one party has the capability to deploy software changes on both the mobile devices and on the content servers helps to understand the potential first-mover advantages associated with the deployment of a new IETF standard protocol. In this study, we have built a quantitative techno-economic model to estimate the implementation costs for a content provider selling application downloads who is also able to implement MPTCP on both ends and compare them against the revenue MPTCP generates. The results suggest that even a relatively small increase in the number of downloads could make the business case profitable within five years.