UAEnic first to receive Internet Protocol Version 6 in Middle East

Once fully implemented, IPv6 will increase the number of electronic appliances that can be connected to an Internet network by expanding the number of Internet Protocol (IP) addresses available. At the same time, security and mobility will also be improved.

'Essentially an IP address is a unique set of coded numbers that allow appliances to be identified over a network,' commented Abdulla Hashim, Manager, UAEnic. 'In the future, new wireless and fixed devices needing a network connection will become abundant. Ensuring the U.A.E is ready for any future trends and technology is the key objective of UAEnic. As part of that commitment, we have been pursuing the new addresses vigorously.'

As soon as the relevant technical and administrative policy is put in place, the new addresses will be distributed to the local community.

Any device on a network including printers, servers and PCs has an IP address in order to receive information from other devices. IPv6 is an evolution of the current IPv4, which is running out of individual IP addresses due to the explosive growth of the Internet in recent yeas. Many products, including the major computer operating systems, now support IPv6.

Following two years of extensive testing with the country, and an IPv6 forum held by Etisalat in 2002, the relevant authorization for IPv6 was received from the Regional IP Address European (RIPE), the global governing body for Internet Protocol (IP).

By increasing the IPv6 addresses from 32 bits to 128 bits, the number of available IP addresses will rise from 2.4 billion to a total of 340 billion billion billion billion unique addresses

'IPv6 has been developed to facilitate the next step in Internet development,' added Hashim. 'It gives us the flexibility to plan for new devices and applications to be 'plugged' into interconnecting networks. Being the first in the region to achieve this status is testimony to UAEnic's commitment to bringing the latest technology to the U.A.E.'