The Internet which has radically altered society as we know it on Planet Earth in little over a generation may be one of the best things since sliced bread but it's actually just a whole load of computers wired together with clever routing and as such, it relies on a system for allocating addresses (IP addresses) so that all connected devices can communicate with each other.
Assuming around 7 billion devices connected (1 for each person alive today); It had been anticipated for many years that the system of address allocation would be unable to keep up with predicted future demand.
With only 5 address allocators (RIRs or regional registries per continental territory), it means a highly centralized system with lots of single points of failure that is often slow to respond adequately to change through a lack of flexibility, innovation and competition.
All allocated addresses require renewal fees to be paid repeatedly and with the advent of the Internet of Things, IoT meaning a whole new generation of everyday electrical appliances requiring their own multiple internet addresses, and the roll out of ultra-high bandwidth 5G networks, address stack renewal fees will begin to stack up ever higher as ever more addresses will be required over the long term.
