IP v6 - An opportunity for new service and network features

As migration to IPv6 in US, driven by the exhaustion of the IPv4 global address pool or by US DoD (Department of Defense) mandate etc, is picking up its momentum within enterprise networks, the Service Providers (SP) are also investigating multiple options to support customer IPv6 sites through a gradual upgrade to IPv6. These options include dual-stack, tunneling and translation. More importantly, SPs are considering this migration to IPv6 as an opportunity to develop and design their next generation networks and services. These novel services may not necessarily depend on IPv6 technology (could as well be done with IPv4) but IPv6 provides an opportunity to evaluate new design and service ideas. This paper talks about such potential opportunities, some entirely new while others being solutions to problematic aspects of SP’s existing IPv4 network and yet others are an attempt to define new services based on IPv6 technology specifics.