Without IPv6, “countries will be unable to communicate with each other”

05/11/2014

Despite the efforts of LACNIC and the regional community aimed at accelerating IPv6 expansion and use, the progress made in Latin America and the Caribbean towards the adoption of the latest Internet protocol has been uneven. On the one hand, some countries have made great progress and already up to 9% of their traffic is using this technology. On the other hand, certain areas haven’t even deployed IPv6 yet.

Alejandro Acosta, R+D Engineer at LACNIC, says there is a serious risk that the region’s countries will not  be able to communicate among themselves if this new Internet Protocol, which offers great advantages over the previous version (IPv4), is not adopted.

We spoke to Acosta during the LACNIC event held in Chile.

In your opinion, are the region’s companies and organizations aware of the pressing need to use IPv6?

That’s a complex question. Many organizations are indeed aware of the situation and have already done some work in this regard. I’m sure, however, that most Latin American and Caribbean organizations have not yet become aware of this. I think that the near future –particularly 2015– will be important in terms of IPv6 dissemination and adoption among private organizations.

What do you think it would take to boost IPv6 adoption?

I think the answer is a combination of many things. Governments must adopt a relatively firm position and internally promote IPv6 adoption within each country. ISPs, Internet users, and universities can also help disseminate the protocol.

What might happen if some Latin American and Caribbean countries make greater progress than others towards IPv6 adoption?

This topic has been discussed quite a bit in Europe, a region with differing levels of development. The answer is simple: those countries that fall behind will unfortunately become isolated. The Internet knows no borders and all countries need to connect with the rest of the world. What will happen? Unfortunately, countries that have adopted IPv6 and want to connect with a country that hasn’t been able to do so will be unable to communicate. This will affect organizations in both countries. This is something that has already happened at many ISPs. Customers of an ISP that wasn’t offering IPv6 have had to move to other ISPs that were.

Which countries are the most advanced in our region?

Right now, Peru’s IPv6 adoption rate is more than 9%. The countries with the least progress are part of Central America.

What benefits will end users derive from IPv6?

Although there are many benefits, I will mention just two of them. The first benefit is the possibility of connecting a large number of devices at home or corporate level directly to the Internet, which will allow developing the Internet of Things. The second is the fact that applications will not fail.

For more information, please visit portalipv6.lacnic.net