IPv6 Again

An article on Slashdot this morning discusses the release of the IP address range 1.0.0.0/8 for public use. This is of course connected with the so called saturation of the IPv4 address range which according to the article is still predicted for the end of 2012.

As I’ve discussed before, the solution to the lack of IPv4 addresses is IPv6 for which the technology and in some cases the infrastructure is already in place. The comments section of the Slashdot article debates just how much of a problem this really is. Although there is no consensus, it seems clear that there is a leadership vacuum in addressing the issue. I can see no reason why businesses and certainly not home users would currently take the effort to migrate to IPv6. There needs to be some incentive or regulatory requirement to do so, which probably needs to be set at the government level. To be fair, the EU does have an IPv6 program in which they acknowledge the problem. The stated goals to address the issue are:

1. An increased support towards IPv6 in public networks and services,

2. The establishment and launch educational programmes on IPv6,

3. The adoption of IPv6 through awareness raising campaigns,

4. The continued stimulation of the Internet take-up across the European Union,

5. An increased support to IPv6 activities in the 6th Framework Programme,

6. The strengthening of the support towards the IPv6 enabling of national and European Research Networks,

7. An active contribution towards the promotion of IPv6 standards work,

8. The integration of IPv6 in all strategic plans concerning the use of new Internet services.

This is very noble, but to me at least, the program does not generate enough “noise” to provoke a mobilisation of effort that will make a difference.