It has address limitations, performance problems and a raft of other deficiencies. All need to be addressed for the Internet and related IP technologies to move forward - especially in light of the Internet's exploding popularity and growing use as a multimedia delivery system. As the use of Internet and IP-related technologies increases, the strains placed on IPv4 become more evident. Big companies are having trouble getting addresses for new users. New applications with multimedia capabilities are being delayed or not deployed at all because there is no way to prioritize traffic flow.
Administrators find it difficult to add, delete and change accounts on large IP-based networks.
Probably the biggest and most talked about new component IPv6 brings to the table is a larger address space. Addresses define a specific node on the network where data, such as mail or file transfers should be sent. Addressing has been the bane of the Internet's existence for years. This means a far greater number of users will be able to tie directly into the 'Net. It should also increase the scalability of IP-based networks in the corporate environment.