The internet has undergone extraordinary growth over the past decade, to the point where it's running out of addresses.

    Every device linked to the internet – not only computers, but also mobile phones, gaming consoles, digital TVs and even cars with sat-nav systems, for example – has been assigned a number that lets it connect with the rest of the devices on the network. These numbers, or IP addresses, are critical for the operation of the internet – without them it simply could not work, as devices would be unable to address or talk with one another effectively.

    The biggest threat that the internet faces today is that we're running out of IP addresses. The number of unassigned addresses under the current system – IP version 4 or IPv4 for short – will soon drop through the 10 per cent mark, and is expected to run out completely in 2011.

    The explosive growth of the internet and the rapid adoption of networked digital devices worldwide has led to this IP address exhaustion. The technical community has been aware of the issue for many years, recognising that a new protocol was required to meet future demand. It was with this in mind that the next-generation of IP addresses, IPv6, was developed in the mid-1990s.

    Unlike IPv4 addresses, of which there are about 4.3 billion in total, IPv6 addresses have a longer format, allowing for about a trillion trillion addresses in total, or 340,282,366,920,938,463,463,374,607,431,768,211,456 to be precise. That's more than enough to ensure that internet development continues at the same pace it has for the past ten years.

    The uptake of IPv6 addresses has so far been slow, but it is paramount that ISPs, governments and private companies now make it a priority to accelerate adoption. Only by ensuring that all devices connected to the internet are compatible with IPv6, can we stay connected and safeguard sustainable growth in the years to come.

    互聯網技術經歷了過去10年的迅速增長， 以至于現在創建的網址已大大超出了互聯網的承受范圍。

    連接到互聯網的設備-不僅是電腦，而且手機，游戲機，數字電視，甚至汽車，例如安裝了座駕導航系統的汽車就被指派一個數字

    以便將其連接到其它的網絡設備。這些數字或IP地址，對于互聯網的運作是至關重要的-沒有它們，互聯網根本無法工作。 因為沒有了它們，系統無法定位，相互之間也無法進行有效交談。

    當今互聯網面臨的最大威脅是，現在創建的網址已大大超出了互聯網的承受范圍。若使用現有系統--IP版本4（簡稱為IPv4）,在不久的將來，未分配的網址數量將減少百分之十。IP版本4預計在2011年運行。