By far the simplest approach to obtain peering is to simply ask for it. Sometimes the response includes a set of peering prerequisites, and, if the prerequisites are met, a follow up discussion with the target ISP to negotiate peering. The “Internet Service Providers and Peering” documents a handful of ways of initiating this interaction.

For each tactic we present in this paper we demonstrate the tactic graphically. In the “Direct Approach”, the interactions (shown as directed arcs) show the ISPs engage via e-mail, phone calls, face to face, etc. directly. Obviously, the more complicated tactics will use these diagrams more fully than in this example.

There are many snafus with the Direct Approach. In many cases the Peering Prerequisites are not publicly available. Many of the ISP Peering Coordinators indicated great difficulty in even getting a return e-mail and/or phone call at all.  In some cases it is not clear which peering e-mail address to use.  It is also not clear how much information is needed for the initial interaction, nor whether the target will be receptive to the overature.

Further, the notion of “Peer” includes the notion of similar size of infrastructure, reach, and traffic volume. The target Peering Coordinator may not know enough about the initiating ISP or may not see the initiating ISP as a true “Peer” and therefore not be motivated to pursue the relationship. Startup ISPs tend to be somewhat optimistic about their traffic growth futures, and since 95% of ISPs use intuition (brand name recognition in many cases) to determine who to peer with, it is difficult for these unknown companies to be seen as a true “peer.” 

Jeffrey Papen (Yahoo!) claims that persistence pays off with the direct approach. The peering aliases often include a dozen people or more that are not equally vigilant about handling the peering request e-mail. Sending e-mail to a specific person was mentioned as a method to increase the likelihood of a response. At the same time, anecdotes about expanding the e-mail interactions to include the peering@<ispdomain>.net alias were also mentioned as effective in ensuring the broader peering community within the target ISP is kept in the interaction. This way, if discussions get stalled, there are additional folks that are up to speed on the state of the interactions. The consensus among the Peering Coordinator community was that person-to-person, ideally face-to-face, contact for discussion helps speed things along.

The challenges with the Direct Approach have led Peering Coordinators to employ the remaining additional tactics to obtaining peering.