Nortel First to Achieve Next Generation Internet Protocol Qualification

Nortel (www.nortel.com) has become the first networking company to complete the University of New Hampshire InterOperability Laboratory (UNH-IOL) phase II test regimen for IPv6, the next generation Internet Protocol.

"The current Internet infrastructure, reliant on IPv4, has proven amazingly
resilient," said Chuck Saffell, president, Federal Network Solutions, Nortel.

UNH-IOL is the industry's leading IPv6 lab, offering what is considered to be the most comprehensive testing available to ensure IPv6 compliance of various networking platforms and solutions.

"IPv6 represents the next generation Internet Protocol and it substantially improves on the current version - especially improving security and scalability," said Larry Hettick, vice president for Wireline Solutions at Current Analysis.

Nortel has also demonstrated the IPv6 capabilities in a multi-vendor environment by participating in the Moonv6 future Internet trials recently conducted by U.S. Department of Defense, the Internet2 Consortium, the North American IPv6 Task Force and UNH-IOL.

IPv6 will enable the Internet to continue to grow, accommodating new addresses for users and destinations on the Internet that would otherwise be unavailable with current technology.

"Nortel's Moonv6 trial results demonstrate that the company has viable, deployment-ready IPv6 solutions," Hettick said. "By being the first to pass the comprehensive UNH testing regimen, Nortel has taken a leadership position in IPv6 development."

IPv6 will also provide greater security to the medium and allow new rich-featured applications that require more capacity than is available in the current Internet configuration.

This will enable new applications that can run on many devices and very high-bandwidth applications - like live video, distance learning, telemedicine, movies, concerts and other entertainment - to be delivered globally via the Internet as desired by end-users.

"Nortel is the first company to complete the InterOperability Lab's IPv6 comprehensive testing regimen," said Erica Williamsen, IPv6 technical manager for the University of New Hampshire Interoperability Lab.

The Moonv6 trials involved the world's largest multi-vendor IPv6 network, and represented the most aggressive collaborative IPv6 interoperability and application demonstration in North America.

Moonv6 testing was conducted in collaboration between the UNH-IOL and the U.S. Defense Department's Joint Interoperability Test Command (JITC). Test areas included interoperability in pure IPv6 as well as mixed IPv6 and IPv4 networks.

"The next generation of the Internet depends on IPv6 to provide the extra resources to accommodate the increased requirements for addresses, security and end-to-end quality of service capabilities required to serve the global demands of the public infrastructure," said Zeus Kerravala, vice president, Enterprise Research, Yankee Group.

Nortel products have also passed or are undergoing IPv6 compliance and interoperability testing and certification with other entities focused on IPv6, including the U.S. Department of Defense.