'Panic merchants' who predicted the end of the internet, as Internet Protocol version 4 (IPv4) addresses run out, are as bad as the Y2K bug alarmists of 12 years ago, according to a local proponent of IPv6.
A magician in a long black coat walks out on stage. A voice booms: “The great Mephisto will now saw his beautiful assistant in half”. The audience breathes in. The saw cuts through the box. The magician pushes the two halves of the box containing his assistant apart. The transition from internet protocol version four (IPv4) to version six (IPv6) is much like this magic act. The Web that was once one is now two.
With only days passed since the Asia Pacific regional internet registry initiated a severely reduced allocation policy for Internet Protocol version 4 (IPv4), ‘black’ markets have begun to appear for operators and address holders to trade address between themselves.
The Asia Pacific Network Information Centre (APNIC) has run out of all but a handful of IPv4 addresses that it is holding in reserve for start-up network operators.