Bandwidth sharing

• US 10,122,652 B2
• Filed: 12/20/2017
• Issued: 11/06/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 08/28/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: McCarrick, Michael D.
• Primary Examiner(s): Survillo, Oleg
• Assistant Examiner(s): Cadorna, Christopher P
• Application Number:
  US15/848,106
• Publication Number:
  US 20180115499A1
• Time in Patent Office: 321 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/00 Information retrieval; Database structures therefor; File system structures therefor
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 47/82 Miscellaneous aspects

Abstract

A method and system for bandwidth sharing to enable communication between users over the Internet. An Internet Service Provider (ISP) receives: a second key from a first user after the first user received the second key from a second user; and a directive to transfer W upload bandwidth from the first user to the second user for a time duration. The ISP previously provided a first key and a second key to the first user and second user in conjunction with the first user and second user having an upload bandwidth of U1 and U1 for transmitting data via the Internet, respectively. The first key and second key can identify the first user and second user, respectively. Responsive to receiving the second key from the first user, changing, by the ISP for the time duration: the second user'"'"'s upload bandwidth to U2+W and the first user'"'"'s upload bandwidth to U1−W.

Claims

1. A method for bandwidth sharing to enable communication between users over the Internet, said method comprising:

receiving, by an Internet Service Provider (ISP) from a first user after the first user received a second key from a second user;

the second key and a directive to transfer from the first user to the second user for a finite time duration N;

W upload bandwidth and Z download bandwidth,

wherein W is unequal to Z,

wherein the ISP previously provided a first key to the first user in conjunction with a first plan in which the first user purchased from the ISP an upload bandwidth of U1 for transmitting data via the Internet and a download bandwidth of D1 for receiving data via the Internet,

wherein the first key is configured to be parsed to identify the first user, wherein the ISP previously provided the second key to the second user in conjunction with a second plan in which the second user purchased from the ISP an upload bandwidth of U2 for transmitting data via the Internet and a download bandwidth of D2 for receiving data via the Internet,

wherein the second key is configured to be parsed to identify the second user, and

wherein U1, D1, U2 and D2 differ from one another;

responsive to said receiving the second key from the first user, changing, by the ISP for the time duration N;

the second user'"'"'s upload bandwidth to U2+W, the second user'"'"'s download bandwidth to D2+Z, the first user'"'"'s upload bandwidth to U1-W, and the first user'"'"'s download bandwidth to D1−

Z, wherein W is an additional upload bandwidth, and wherein communication between the second user and the first user requires a permitted upload bandwidth greater than U2 and less than U2+W; and

responsive to receiving, by the ISP from the second user within the time duration N, a directive to establish a communication between the second user and the first user to transfer specified data, transferring, by the ISP during the time duration N in accordance with the permitted upload bandwidth, the specified data from the second user to the first user.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein said receiving the second key from the first user includes receiving a request from the first user through a graphical user interface.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein said receiving the second key from the first user includes receiving a request from the first user through a cellular phone network.

4. A computer program product, comprising one or more computer readable hardware storage devices containing computer readable program code that when executed by one or more processors of a computer system implements a method for bandwidth sharing to enable communication between users over the Internet, said method comprising:

receiving, by an Internet Service Provider (ISP) from a first user after the first user received a second key from a second user;

the second key and a directive to transfer from the first user to the second user for a finite time duration N;

W upload bandwidth and Z download bandwidth,

wherein W is unequal to Z,

wherein the ISP previously provided a first key to the first user in conjunction with a first plan in which the first user purchased from the ISP an upload bandwidth of U for transmitting data via the Internet and a download bandwidth of D1 for receiving data via the Internet,

wherein the first key is configured to be parsed to identify the first user, wherein the ISP previously provided the second key to the second user in conjunction with a second plan in which the second user purchased from the ISP an upload bandwidth of U2 for transmitting data via the Internet and a download bandwidth of D2 for receiving data via the Internet,

wherein the second key is configured to be parsed to identify the second user, and

wherein U1, D1, U2 and D2 differ from one another;

responsive to said receiving the second key from the first user, changing, by the ISP for the time duration N;

the second user'"'"'s upload bandwidth to U2+W, the second user'"'"'s download bandwidth to D2+Z, the first user'"'"'s upload bandwidth to U1−

W, and the first user'"'"'s download bandwidth to D1−

Z, wherein W is an additional upload bandwidth, and wherein communication between the second user and the first user requires a permitted upload bandwidth greater than U2 and less than U2+W; and

responsive to receiving, by the ISP from the second user within the time duration N, a directive to establish a communication between the second user and the first user to transfer specified data, transferring, by the ISP during the time duration N in accordance with the permitted upload bandwidth, the specified data from the second user to the first user.

5. The computer program product of claim 4, wherein said receiving the second key from the first user includes receiving a request from the first user through a graphical user interface.

6. The computer program product of claim 4, wherein said receiving the second key from the first user includes receiving a request from the first user through a cellular phone network.

7. A computer system, comprising:

one or more processors;

one or more memories; and

one or more computer readable hardware storage devices containing computer readable program code that when executed by the one or more processors via the one or more memories implements a method for bandwidth sharing to enable communication between users over the Internet, said method comprising;

receiving, by an Internet Service Provider (ISP) from a first user after the first user received a second key from a second user;

the second key and a directive to transfer from the first user to the second user for a finite time duration N;

W upload bandwidth and Z download bandwidth,

wherein W is unequal to Z,

wherein the ISP previously provided a first key to the first user in conjunction with a first plan in which the first user purchased from the ISP an upload bandwidth of U1 for transmitting data via the Internet and a download bandwidth of D1 for receiving data via the Internet,

wherein the first key is configured to be parsed to identify the first user, wherein the ISP previously provided the second key to the second user in conjunction with a second plan in which the second user purchased from the ISP an upload bandwidth of U2 for transmitting data via the Internet and a download bandwidth of D2 for receiving data via the Internet,

wherein the second key is configured to be parsed to identify the second user, and

wherein U1, D1, U2 and D2 differ from one another;

responsive to said receiving the second key from the first user, changing, by the ISP for the time duration N;

the second user'"'"'s upload bandwidth to U2+W, the second user'"'"'s download bandwidth to D2+Z, the first user'"'"'s upload bandwidth to U1−

W, and the first user'"'"'s download bandwidth to D1−

Z, wherein W is an additional upload bandwidth, and wherein communication between the second user and the first user requires a permitted upload bandwidth greater than U2 and less than U2+W; and

responsive to receiving, by the ISP from the second user within the time duration N, a directive to establish a communication between the second user and the first user to transfer specified data, transferring, by the ISP during the time duration N in accordance with the permitted upload bandwidth, the specified data from the second user to the first user.

8. The computer system of claim 7, wherein said receiving the second key from the first user includes receiving a request from the first user through a graphical user interface.

9. The computer system of claim 7, wherein said receiving the second key from the first user includes receiving a request from the first user through a cellular phone network.