Pricing is a recently proposed mechanism for congestion control and resource allocation in computer networks.A novel feature of pricing policies is that they provide an incentive for users to utilize network resources more efficiently.This paper presents a market based approach to allocate bandwidth under wide area network environment.The market based approach to allocate bandwidth under wide area network environment.The market price of the bandwidth is calculated based on the bandwidth demand of users （i.e.

applications or flows） and the bandwidth usage of the network system

which is used together with users’ price parameters to regulate bandwidth allocation along their routes.Then a bandwidth allocation algorithm by employing users’ price parameters is proposed.We prove its effectiveness in improving users’ satisfaction and the system’s utilization through analysis.