  Path-aware networks (PANs) are emerging as an intriguing new paradigm with
the potential to significantly improve the dependability and efficiency of
networks. However, the benefits of PANs can only be realized if the adoption of
such architectures is economically viable. This paper shows that PANs enable
novel interconnection agreements among autonomous systems, which allow to
considerably improve both economic profits and path diversity compared to
today's Internet. Specifically, by supporting packet forwarding along a path
selected by the packet source, PANs do not require the Gao-Rexford conditions
to ensure stability. Hence, autonomous systems can establish novel agreements,
creating new paths which demonstrably improve latency and bandwidth metrics in
many cases. This paper also expounds two methods to set up agreements which are
Pareto-optimal, fair, and thus attractive to both parties. We further present a
bargaining mechanism that allows two parties to efficiently automate agreement
negotiations.
