Multi-agent system product lines: Challenges and benefits

The feasibility and benefits of multi-agent systems product lines (MAS-PL) are discussed. The SPL emphasizes the analysis of the scope of the SPL and the analysis of common and variable features across the SPL, which is not carried out by the agent-oriented software engineering (AOSE). The main benefit of combining both AOSE and SPL is that SPL will gain increased acceptance in the industrial world. MAS-PL, incorporating benefits from both SPL and AOSE, will help in industrial exploitation of the agent technology, saving both effort and cost. A symbiosis between both AOSE and SPL arises when AOSE also provides benefits to SPL, mainly through encouraging and improving research on SPL of complex distributed systems. MAS-PL represents a great, worthwhile, challenge that will attract the interest of many practitioners and researchers.