Etisalat to co-hots IPv6 regional summit
The IPv6 Summit will gather the most innovative and influential leaders from the region's Internet community to discuss strategic and deployment issues related to IPv6. During the summit, speakers from the International IPv6 summit will present an overview of the latest developments in the implementation of IPv6. Regional telecom operators and ISPs will also announce their plans and strategy for IPv6 during the summit.
IPv6 is the "next generation" protocol designed by the IETF(Internet Engineering Task Force) to replace the current version Internet Protocol, IP Version 4 ("IPv4").Most of today's internet uses IPv4, which is now nearly twenty years old. As a result, there is a growing shortage of IPv4 addresses, which are needed by all new machines added to the Internet. Etisalat through UAEnic (United Arab Emirates Network Information Centre) kickstarted the IPv6 initiative in the UAE by end of year 2000 by bringing the technology to UAE. As part of this initiative Etisalat had joined the 6bone Network for testing purposes to gain more experience on IPv6. A task force has been in place since then which has implemented a IPv6 network with connections to many regional ISPs for testing purposes.
According to Mohammed Al Fahim, Executive VP, Marketing Etisalat, "Etisalat's position as a regional leader in bringing in state-of-the-art technologies & services to the region is reflected by our sponsorship of this summit.IPv6 protocol shall provide new addressing schemes that support a much higher level of security, Quality of Services (QoS) & Mobility . Etisalat has already committed substantial resources to incorporate this protocol in our network and we look forward to sharing our experience and exchange insights with other participants from the region." Speaking on the occasion, Abdulla Hashim,Senior Manager ,eCompany said , "As devices & applications that run over the Internet rapidly increase, the need for new IP addresses is being keenly felt. Moreover, as the smart home phenomena takes off and more household devices are controlled over the network, there will be a need to provide addresses for these items. This will allow us to take advantage of the market opportunities which thus arise.I am confident that this summit will help highlight the benefits of deploying IPv6 and give attendees insights into applications of IPv6 in different areas." According to Itidal Hasoon, General Manager, Case Technology and Co Chair MEA IPv6TF(Middle East & Africa Internet Protocol Version 6 Task Force), "As a founder of worldwide IPv6 Forum, Case Technology has taken the lead in creating the awareness and we are in the process of forming the IPv6 Middle East & UAE Taskforce to deploy IPv6 in the region. This taskforce will promote and help the region embrace IPv6 and move towards its deployment in a phased manner. It is the responsibility of service providers, governments and technology providers to implement IPv6 for e-Nations.
This will allow more sophisticated deployment of eGovernment, eEducation, eBanking and defence models." According to Latif Ladid, President, IPv6 Forum and Vice President, Ericsson Telebit A/S Luxembourg," IPv6 will enable the two-way Internet igniting a whole myriad of end-2-end innovations. IPv6 will add a capital architectural design to lead the Internet where it should head to and where it has not gone before, generating new business models beyond the current web model. IPv6 is not a fashion. IPv6 is a vital plumbing upgrade for the building of the New Internet. It's the investment of the 21st century for innovation in networking of everyone and everything and a green field for new innovations over innovations." WAM/MAB