The world of content provisioning over IP-based networks is currently undergoing a significant change, as Content Providers (CPs) have started to connect directly to Network Service Providers (NSPs) or even operate networks on their own. The resulting novel network architectures pose several fundamental economical challenges, for instance with respect to incentives for traditional network operators to offer Internet access to large Over-The-Top (OTT) providers. In this paper, we discuss these challenges from a techno-economic perspective, with an emphasis on new business and charging models. We focus on the so-called "Paradox of Side Payments", an important property for charging frameworks enabling more sophisticated cooperation with OTTs. After briefly revisiting the paradox itself, we critically discuss its underlying assumptions. Based on a numerical analysis, we point out limitations of the model, including aspects of applicability for commercial scenarios and future business models. A summary of the main results concludes the paper.
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