A Computational Model For Online Agent Negotiation

Agent-based on-line negotiation technology has the potential ability to radically change the way ebusiness is conducted. In this paper, we present a formal model for autonomous agents to negotiate on the Internet. In the basic negotiation scenario, we validate our model by showing that an agent will never make an offer that can possibly be exploited by its opponents. In our model, the negotiation process is driven by the internal beliefs of participating agents. We empirically identify the relative strength of a group of belief updating methods and show how an agent can change its behavior by adjusting some critical parameters.