Internet addresses could run out by 2011, warn experts

IP addresses, which are required for any device directly connecting to the internet, may be exhausted by 2011 if measures aren't taken, according to experts. Businesses, which tend to connect all machines directly to the internet, stand to run out of addresses first, and few are prepared to make the jump to the next generation of IP addressing, called IPv6. Less than 20% of industries surveyed by the European Commission had made the switch which is probably due to the cost of upgrading equipment. The current standard, IPv4, can support approximately 4.3 billion addresses, but the new standard can easily support more addresses than a person could imagine (if you must know, it's 3.4×10^38 addresses).