BEIJING - China is likely to test a new Internet protocol in the next few years in an attempt to further develop the country's Internet, senior officials from the State Council said on Friday.

The country will put the Internet Protocol version 6 (IPv6)-based network into small-scale commercial pilot use by the end of 2013, and deploy and commercialize the IPv6-based network on a large scale between 2014 and 2015, according to a statement released after an executive meeting of the State Council that was presided over by Premier Wen Jiabao.

"The development of IPv6 is one of the most important tasks for China's Internet industry during the 12th Five-Year Plan period, from 2011 to 2015," said Hu Qiheng, director-general of the Internet Society of China.