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Hong Kong Observatory launches IPv6 network time service
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     The Hong Kong Observatory today (March 29) launched the IPv6 network time service to meet the needs of the Internet industry in connection with the development of the next generation Internet Protocol.

     The network time service is a very important network infrastructure. The Observatory's new IPv6 network time service provides accurate, more direct and low-latency time signals to support the setup of network facilities and servers over IPv6 networks in Hong Kong. The service may be accessed through the Observatory's Network Time Protocol (NTP) servers at the network address: time.hko.hk .

     The Hong Kong Observatory has for decades been responsible for the provision of Hong Kong standard time. Following the rise of the Internet, the Observatory began providing a network time service in 1999, which has since become very popular. In 2011, the Observatory's network time service provided over 1.3 billion synchronisations, registering a growth of over 40 per cent since 2010.

     Besides the network time service, the Observatory also provides Internet clock services, i.e. Web Clock and Palm Clock, enabling members of the public to access the standard time kept by the Observatory's atomic clocks through the Internet.  These services attracted over 1.2 million uses last year. Members of the public may access the services at www.hko.gov.hk/gts/time/clocks_e.html .

Ends/Thursday, March 29, 2012
Issued at HKT 12:39

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