A Social Network-Based Information Dissemination Scheme

Handheld devices can use the Bluetooth technology to exchange information with other. This feature allows that handheld devices to be utilized in disseminating information. A scheme for disseminating information using the handheld devices is proposed. The scheme uses both social network analysis and user activity analysis to deliver information to people who might be interested in the information. To encourage people to participate in disseminating information, the scheme uses an incentive mechanism and the integer programming technique to maximize the benefit that people can gain by passing other people's information. Some experiments were carried out to compare the effectiveness of the proposed scheme with other schemes.