The proprietary nature of existing Content Delivery Networks (CDNs) means they are closed and do not naturally cooperate, resulting in “islands” of CDNs. Finding ways for distinct CDNs to coordinate and cooperate with other CDNs is necessary to achieve better overall service, as perceived by end-users, at lower cost. In this paper, we present an architecture to support peering arrangements among CDN providers, based on a Virtual Organization (VO) model. Our approach promotes peering among providers, reduces expenditure, while upholding user perceived performance. This is achieved through proper policy management of negotiated Service Level Agreements (SLAs) among peers. In addition, scalability and resource sharing among CDNs is improved through effective peering, thus evolving past the current landscape where “islands” of CDNs exist. We also show analytically that significant performance improvement can be achieved through the peering of CDNs. Categories and Subject Descripto...