Apparatus and method for communication between devices in close proximity in wireless network

An electronic device comprising:

• a housing;
• at least one antenna;
• at least one wireless communication circuitry located in the housing, operatively connected to the antenna, and configured to support a neighbor awareness networking (NAN) protocol;
• a processor located in the housing and operatively connected to the wireless communication circuitry;
• and
• a memory operatively connected to the processor,
• wherein the memory stores instructions that, when being executed, cause the processor to:
• broadcast a first signal notifying that the electronic device can operate as a first proxy server through the wireless communication circuitry,
• receive a second signal including a first proxy client registration request from a first external electronic device,
• transmit a third signal including a first proxy client registration response to the first external electronic device in response to the second signal,
• receive a fourth signal notifying that a second external electronic device can operate as a second proxy server from the second external electronic device through the wireless communication circuitry while operating as the first proxy server of the first external electronic device,
• transmit a fifth signal including a second proxy client registration request to the second external electronic device based on the fourth signal,
• receive a sixth signal including a second proxy client registration response corresponding to the fifth signal from the second external electronic device, and
• operate the electronic device as a first proxy client of the second external electronic device in parallel with operating the electronic device as the first proxy server of the first external electronic device.