Exploiting P2P solutions in telecommunication service delivery platforms

Network Operators provide Telecommunication services according the "Network Intelligence" paradigm based on centralized sets of specialized resources. Their major competitors in offering new services are Web2.0 Service Providers, which adopt the "Web as a platform" approach: services, designed according to client-server paradigm, are deployed on large, but cost effective, data centers able to satisfy an increasing number of service requests. Web2.0 Service Providers seem to have a technological edge on service delivery over Network Operators. To face this threat, Network Operators could adopt P2P technology, as an alternative to "Network Intelligence" and client-server paradigms, to build future proof service platforms, "naturally" open and extensible by users and communities, and leveraging connectivity, their main asset. This chapter describes motivations and characteristics of a novel service platform based on P2P technology for delivering Telecommunication and ICT services. It includes also an analysis of technical advantages, and considerations on business and costs aspects.