Virtualized Resource Sharing in Cloud Radio Access Networks Through Truthful Mechanisms

In the recent paradigm of cloud radio access networks (C-RAN), signal processing functions at the base stations (BSs) are virtualized and migrated into a mobile cloud that maintains a pool of virtual BS (VBS) instances. Remote radio heads and antennae at the BSs are connected to the VBS pool by fronthaul fiber links. Mobile operators may lease resources from the tower company who owns the C-RAN infrastructure. We study auction mechanisms for efficiently sharing C-RAN resources among mobile operators. Leveraging randomized rounding, we design an offline C-RAN auction mechanism that can achieve truthfulness and near-optimal social welfare. For the more realistic setting of online bid arrival, we design an online algorithm that executes in polynomial time and achieves a competitive ratio of $(1-\epsilon )$ . A tailored fractional Vickrey–Clarke–Groves mechanism works in concert with the online algorithm to elicit truthful bids. Extensive simulation studies verify the efficacy of our C-RAN auction mechanisms.