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Protocol mediation enables interaction between communicating parties where there is a shared conceptual model of the intent and purpose of the communication, and where the mechanics of communication interaction vary. The communicating partners are using different protocols to achieve the same or similar ends. We present a description driven approach to protocol mediation which provides a more malleable approach to the integration of web services than the current rigid ‘plug-and-socket’ approach offered by description technologies such as WSDL. It enables the substitution of one service provider with another even though they use different interaction protocols. Our approach is centred on the identification of common domain specific protocol independent communicative acts; the description of abstract protocols which constrain the sequencing of communicative acts; and the description of …