The Internet community has for decades been forewarned of the fast depleting IPv4 (Internet Protocol version 4) addresses. But as the Internet clock continues to click, some camps are still saying that some organisations, including technology vendors, are not yet prepared for the transition.

The Number Resource Organization (NRO), the body which represents the five Regional Internet Registries (RIRs), recently announced that the final five remaining address blocks (one "/8" block containing about 16.5 million IP addresses) have been allocated equally among the world's five regions.

This means all IP addresses using the IPv4 protocol "is now fully depleted" and it is up to the regional registries -- APNIC in the case of the Asia Pacific region -- to allocate these to organisations or Internet service providers (ISPs) requiring IP addresses.

Each computer and device that connects to the Internet is identified by an IP address. With more and more people wanting to connect to the Internet, the four billion unique IP addresses developed in the 1980s are expected to run out anytime soon. And the allocation of the blocks to the regions is an indication that time is running short.