ICANN Clears Way for Internet’s Next Generation

CYBERSPACE — The Internet's overseers parted ways with the last 83.9 million addresses needed to connect devices to today's Net — then touted the next-generation Internet.

Today's Internet is wired up with a technology called Internet Protocol version 4, or IPv4, which comes with 4.3 billion addresses to send data from one computer to another. It’s not enough, thus sparking the move to the much more accommodating IPv6 which has now begun, according to CNET.com.

"This is one most important days in the history of the Internet. A pool of more than 4 billion Internet addresses has just been emptied this morning," said Rod Beckstrom, chief executive of the Internet Corporation For Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN), at press conference in Florida.

The Net won't change immediately, but IPv6 will gradually become the way everything is connected online.

"We can think of it as generational change," said Lynn St Amour, CEO of the Internet Society, which handles some Internet standards and advocacy issues and is organizing World IPv6 Day for June 8. "The older previous generation doesn't go away, and has a lot to contribute, but it is the new generation that carries the future."

As IPv4 addresses have become more scarce, technologies such as network address translation (NAT) have sprung up to share a single address among multiple devices. That's been useful — but its affect also fragments the Internet behind an increasing number of network devices. The big message from the press conference was that only IPv6 will fulfill the promise of the Internet.

To maintain use of IPv4, "we'd need to spend increasing resources operating an increasingly brittle and non-transparent network," said Olaf Kolkman, chairman of the Internet Architecture Board. "Such an Internet is likely to grow increasingly less capable of serving our needs today. Rather than maintaining the status quo, the IPv4 Internet is likely to degenerate. If you get too many layers of [network translation], you cripple your ability to do end-to-end communications. Accessing a Web site might be possible, but accessing a file-sharing protocol or hosting your own content may become more and more difficult."

And those who ignore moving their Web sites to IPv4 risk missing out on new arrivals to the Internet who'll use IPv6, he added.

"There are now 2 billion people who connect to the Internet. We've got 6 billion people in the world who want to connect themselves and their devices. That is simply not possible with IPv4. It's just not doable," Kolkman said. "The business impact if you don't make the transition is the next 2 or 3 billion customers will run IPv6 only and will not be able to do business with you."

Related:  

Copyright © 2024 Adnet Media. All Rights Reserved. XBIZ is a trademark of Adnet Media.
Reproduction in whole or in part in any form or medium without express written permission is prohibited.

More News

Segpay Launches Virtual 'Segcard' Creator Payout Solution

Segpay has updated its Segcard creator payout option by offering a new, virtual version.

Leading Conservative Think Tank Slams 5th Circuit for Upholding Texas Age Verification Law

Leading conservative think tank the American Enterprise Institute has published an opinion piece penned by one of its senior fellows criticizing the 5th Circuit endorsement of Texas’ controversial age verification law.

OpenAI Shuts Down AI-Generated Porn Rumors

A spokesperson for OpenAI, the company behind ChatGPT, has shut down online chatter about how a rumored relaxation of the company’s stance against AI-generated NSFW content may result in a lifting of its porn ban.

Former Trump Staffer, Project 2025 Advisor John McEntee Predicts a Total Porn Ban

John McEntee, senior advisor to the Heritage Foundation’s Project 2025 and a former key figure in the Trump administration, is predicting an eventual full ban on pornography, claiming that once it is enacted, “this country will flourish.”

Vendo Launches 'Pay by Bank' Service

Vendo has launched its new Pay by Bank checkout system.

CrakRevenue Taps Maxime Bergeron as New CEO

CrakRevenue has appointed longtime staffer Maxime Bergeron as the company's new CEO.

Clips4Sale Adds 'Spatial Video' Category

Clips4Sale (C4S) has debuted a “spatial video” category for the next generation of VR and AR devices.

Lemon Social Launches Educational Program, 'Metaverse' Feature

Premium fan platform Lemon Social has debuted an "Adult Content University" program and a "Lemon Social Metaverse" feature.

Australian Conservatives Raise Concerns About US-Born Online Censor

Long after progressive free speech advocates in Australia questioned eSafety Commissioner Julie Inman Grant over her campaigns to target adult content, conservatives and libertarians are now raising concerns about the powers granted to the country’s top censor — an unelected former tech exec born in the U.S. — with some calling for her ouster.

Cupcake Girls, Aylo Partner on Educational Video Series for Performers

The Cupcake Girls and Aylo have teamed up to produce a series of educational videos focused on safety standards for adult performers.

Show More