Patent ID: 8176170

Claim:
A computer network comprising a plurality of devices interconnected via communication links, each of said devices storing a quality of service register containing information on the quality of service provided by other devices in said network, each of said devices being arranged in operation to respond to a service request by: selecting one of said other devices to provide the requested service; requesting the selected device to provide said service; monitoring the quality of service provided in response to said request; updating said quality of service register in response to said monitored quality of service; and reporting at least some of said quality of service experiences to other devices for updating the quality of service register in the other devices; wherein said selection whilst being made in dependence on said quality of service register has a probabilistic element resulting in the occasional selection of a service provider other than the highest-ranked service provider in said quality of service register; each of said devices being further arranged in operation to: for each service request, compare said monitored quality of service with said quality of service records, and report quality of service experiences relating to the higher-ranked service providers according to said quality of service records less thoroughly than those quality of service experiences relating to lower-ranked service providers by said devices being less likely to report a quality of service report in the event that the quality of service report relates to a higher-ranked service provider according to its quality of service register.