I guess the IETF and router vendors prefer larger fields than having LIRs do the work they are supposed to do.
i don't think i would phrase it just that way. it may be that the rirs, and the ivtf are not optimistic that lirs will do it. and lirs, because of being nearer the folk holding the resources, are the ones who can make the local phone calls. so i agree, in many cases, it is the lirs who need to do the work. and where's the profit for them in that? the root problem in this and in the strafing of the routing table commons is that people are thinking locally and acting, or not acting, globally. what they seem not to see is that short term "where is the profit in that for me this quarter" will add up to far greater opex and capex for them and for all of us in the future. randy