Cost models for Next Generation Networks with quality of service parameters

Most network operators and Internet service providers are offering Triple Play products that integrate services with different QoS requirements. A correct tariff scheme for these products should be correlated with the cost of production. This paper proposes a model based on TELRIC to calculate and distribute the cost of a network element according to the usage that each user type makes of it, based on the services demanded by the user. The cost model is based on the QoS required by different types of service and three traffic engineering methods: over-engineering, separated virtual tunnels and priority queuing, and studies their influence in costing estimation. The cost model is applied as an example to a connection between a DSLAM and a concentrator in order to estimate the influence of the QoS and the traffic engineering mechanisms in the resulting cost.