Editing Peering (section)

==Motivations for peering==
Peering involves two networks coming together to exchange traffic with each other freely, and for mutual benefit.<ref>{{cite web |last1=nowaybackbot |title=What is peering & why networks peer |url=https://www.peer.org.uk/ec/what-is-peering |website=peer.org.uk |access-date=11 February 2022}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://drpeering.net/white-papers/Peering-Motivations-to-Peer.html|title = DrPeering International - Top 4 Motivations to Peer}}</ref> This 'mutual benefit' is most often the motivation behind peering, which is often described solely by "reduced costs for transit services". Other less tangible motivations can include:

* Increased redundancy (by reducing dependence on one or more transit providers).
* Increased capacity for extremely large amounts of traffic (distributing traffic across many networks).
* Increased routing control over one's traffic.
* Improved performance (attempting to bypass potential bottlenecks with a "direct" path).
* Improved perception of one's network (being able to claim a "higher tier").
* Ease of requesting for emergency aid (from friendly peers).