IPV6 for E-business portal to be unveiled in Australia

02.08.2006
In what could be the biggest endorsement to date for next-generation networking in Australia, ICT Minister Senator Helen Coonan will officially open the IPv6 for E-business portal later this year.

The ceremony will be held at the next IPv6 summit in Canberra from December 4 to 6, according to IPv6 Forum Australia president Michael Biber.

Biber said the IPv6 for E-business portal represents a genuine attempt to short-circuit the "If I build it, will they will come?" mentality towards next-generation networks "so we can catch up with other parts of the world".

The portal is a local project funded by a A$200,000 (US$152,700) federal government grant from the Department of Communications IT and the Arts.

However, more "in-kind" funding to the tune of A$600,000 from the member organizations is expected to go towards the portal's development bringing the total to A$800,000.

"It's aimed at B2B activity and designed to document IPv6 readiness," Biber said during a presentation at a VOIP summit in Sydney Wednesday. "People can download software to help with compatibility and transition."