Summary

"IPv6 itself as pure research" period is already over
IPv6 is in deployment phase - you can use it now!

Current IPv6 situations
IPv6 is already in deployment phase
Implementation efforts in Japan

Advanced research topics
Architectural questions
New developments

Numerous topics exist for advanced IPv6 research and development

New developments are possible only if you deploy IPv6
It is very important to actually use it, rather than just think about it.
So deploy it now!