Internet 'running out of addresses'

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Broadband users of the future could find that the internet has run into a brick wall unless governments increase their investment, according to the Organisation for Economic Co-Operation and Development.

The economic authority said that nearly 85 per cent of all available internet addresses have been taken.

Within three years' time, the report claims, there will be no new addresses left, a result which could stifle the growth of the internet and doom creativity.

Because every new user connecting to the internet needs their own IP address, when they run out, it could signal the end of new access.

The OECD urged governments to invest in new protocols that would enable an almost unlimited number of IP addresses to be created.

Some governments, such as those of Japan and the US are already starting to upgrade.

Every US government agency must be compliant with the new IP protocol, IPv6, by June.

China also plans to use the IPv6 to create massive connectivity around the Beijing Olympics.

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