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FirstNet grants extension for BTOP recipients

Donny Jackson, Jun. 12, 2013

Entities have through July 12 to complete spectrum-lease negotiations; meanwhile, the deadline to spend grant money also is expected to be pushed back one year to September 2015.

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Latest Headlines

Jun. 13, 2013

Commentary

Yet another 911 funding tale of woe 1

New Jersey residents generate $130 million annually to support the state's 911 system--yet allegedly none of the money makes it to the county level. This is more evidence that the 911 sector's funding model needs a major overhaul....More

Jun. 12, 2013

Commentary

Band 14 in every cellular device? 2

Including the band in every wireless device--phones, tablet computers, electric meters and more--should dramatically reduce the cost of chipsets, potentially create new funding mechanisms, and provide public officials with a vital alerting resource in emergencies that they don't have today....More

Jun. 11, 2013

Commentary

Global ecosystem for public-safety LTE begins to look realistic 2

The prospect of a global public-safety standard could have a massive impact on pricing for equipment and applications, if managed correctly....More

Jun. 10, 2013

News

Urgent Communications

FirstNet special committee takes initial steps, readies for Fitzgerald interview

Two subcommittees were formed, one to look into openness and transparency concerns, and another to examine conflict-of-interest allegations. FirstNet chairman Sam Ginn has vowed to implement committee recommendations, "whatever they are."...More

Jun. 10, 2013

Article

Urgent Communications

Increasingly, failure to take tower safety seriously could lead to jail

Criminal and civil cases largely hinge on whether the tower owner/operator willfully violated OSHA standards and, as a result, created an unsafe environment for workers....More

Jun. 6, 2013

News

Urgent Communications

UK seeks to replace TETRA with LTE as early as 2016 4

Official says cost, not performance is the issue, and calls TETRA "extremely expensive" compared with the per-minute costs of commercial wireless air time....More

Jun. 6, 2013

Article

Urgent Communications

Video-interpretation service helps hospital improve patient care

Service can be accessed via any smartphone or tablet connected to the hospital's broadband network; currently, interpretation is provided for four languages, plus American sign language....More

Jun. 5, 2013

News

Urgent Communications

FirstNet approves expanded budget, new leadership structure 1

Authorized spending would increase to $20 miliion for FY2013, and paid staff will be hired; general manager Bill D'Agostino hopes to have his "leadership team" in place by September....More

Jun. 4, 2013

News

Urgent Communications

FirstNet completes first half of regional meetings

Meetings have been well attended, and have been "really informative in both directions," said FirstNet board member Jeff Johnson....More

Jun. 4, 2013

News

Urgent Communications

NYC evaluating responses to broadband RFI 3

Dowd says exercise isn't an indicator that city wants to do something separate from the nationwide public safety broadband network being built by FirstNet....More

Jun. 4, 2013

Commentary

Automated-self-healing IT networks seem right around the corner

"Fix yourself" commands work today; the challenge for the future will be in getting organizations to trust the technology....More

May 30, 2013

Commentary

911 funding reform is on its way—hopefully 1

Local control of 911 remains a good idea, but funding is something that should be addressed at the federal level....More

May 30, 2013

Article

Urgent Communications

Interest in dynamic spectrum sharing seems to be increasing 1

As the federal government proclaims a spectrum crunch, two wireless industry veterans believe dynamic spectrum-sharing technology could provide a viable long-term solution....More

May 28, 2013

Article

Urgent Communications

Mississippi faces key funding decisions for statewide P25 network 2

Mississippi legislators will need to provide several millions of dollars in funding, or the statewide P25 network will have to shut down next February, according to a key official with the Mississippi Wireless Communication Commission (WCC)....More

May 23, 2013

News

Urgent Communications

FCC commissioners share incentive-auction ideas at CTIA

Acting Chair Clyburn believes auctions will be held next year; meanwhile, Rosenworcel wants four public hearings to dissect major aspects....More

May 23, 2013

Commentary

FirstNet’s task is complicated by public safety’s diversity

So-called "listening tour" is an important step toward addressing grievances--both real and perceived....More

May 21, 2013

Article

Urgent Communications

Rural Illinois counties light the path to NG-911

Efforts during the past 7 years to bring next-generation 911 service to southern Illinois was extolled as a blueprint for others to follow as they contemplate similar migrations during a recent webinar presented by the National 911 Program Office....More

May 21, 2013

News

Urgent Communications

LA County taps Harris for new P25 system 5

Legacy EDACS system will be replaced by a $20 million system--at no cost to the county--under terms of rebanding deal with Sprint Nextel....More

May 21, 2013

News

Urgent Communications

TCS' VoLTE service for 911 enters production with LTE carriers

Customizable platform enables LTE networks to provide call-routing and location information to PSAPs....More

May 16, 2013

Commentary

BayRICS bounces back

Hampered by a lack of transparency during its early days, the Bay Area Regional Interoperable Communications System (BayRICS) Authority has rebounded nicely and is on the verge of making its public-safety LTE project a reality. With the FirstNet board facing similar allegations in its formative time, FirstNet Chairman Sam Ginn may want to consider the advice of Barry Fraser, the BayRICS general manager who inherited a difficult situation....More

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