https://urgentcomm.com/wp-content/themes/ucm_child/assets/images/logo/footer-new-logo.png
  • Home
  • News
  • Multimedia
    • Back
    • Multimedia
    • Video
    • Podcasts
    • Galleries
    • IWCE’s Video Showcase
    • Product Guides
  • Commentary
    • Back
    • Commentary
    • Urgent Matters
    • View From The Top
    • All Things IWCE
    • Legal Matters
  • Resources
    • Back
    • Resources
    • Webinars
    • White Papers
    • Reprints & Reuse
  • IWCE
    • Back
    • IWCE
    • Conference
    • Special Events
    • Exhibitor Listings
    • Premier Partners
    • Floor Plan
    • Exhibiting Information
    • Register for IWCE
  • About Us
    • Back
    • About Us
    • Contact Us
    • Advertise
    • Terms of Service
    • Privacy Statement
    • Cookie Policy
  • Related Sites
    • Back
    • American City & County
    • IWCE
    • Light Reading
    • IOT World Today
    • Mission Critical Technologies
    • TU-Auto
  • In the field
    • Back
    • In the field
    • Broadband Push-to-X
    • Internet of Things
    • Project 25
    • Public-Safety Broadband/FirstNet
    • Virtual/Augmented Reality
    • Land Mobile Radio
    • Long Term Evolution (LTE)
    • Applications
    • Drones/Robots
    • IoT/Smart X
    • Software
    • Subscriber Devices
    • Video
  • Call Center/Command
    • Back
    • Call Center/Command
    • Artificial Intelligence
    • NG911
    • Alerting Systems
    • Analytics
    • Dispatch/Call-taking
    • Incident Command/Situational Awareness
    • Tracking, Monitoring & Control
  • Network Tech
    • Back
    • Network Tech
    • Interoperability
    • LMR 100
    • LMR 200
    • Backhaul
    • Deployables
    • Power
    • Tower & Site
    • Wireless Networks
    • Coverage/Interference
    • Security
    • System Design
    • System Installation
    • System Operation
    • Test & Measurement
  • Operations
    • Back
    • Operations
    • Critical Infrastructure
    • Enterprise
    • Federal Government/Military
    • Public Safety
    • State & Local Government
    • Training
  • Regulations
    • Back
    • Regulations
    • Narrowbanding
    • T-Band
    • Rebanding
    • TV White Spaces
    • None
    • Funding
    • Policy
    • Regional Coordination
    • Standards
  • Organizations
    • Back
    • Organizations
    • AASHTO
    • APCO
    • DHS
    • DMR Association
    • ETA
    • EWA
    • FCC
    • IWCE
    • NASEMSO
    • NATE
    • NXDN Forum
    • NENA
    • NIST/PSCR
    • NPSTC
    • NTIA/FirstNet
    • P25 TIG
    • TETRA + CCA
    • UTC
Urgent Communications
  • NEWSLETTER
  • Home
  • News
  • Multimedia
    • Back
    • Video
    • Podcasts
    • Omdia Crit Comms Circle Podcast
    • Galleries
    • IWCE’s Video Showcase
    • Product Guides
  • Commentary
    • Back
    • All Things IWCE
    • Urgent Matters
    • View From The Top
    • Legal Matters
  • Resources
    • Back
    • Webinars
    • White Papers
    • Reprints & Reuse
    • UC eZines
    • Sponsored content
  • IWCE
    • Back
    • Conference
    • Why Attend
    • Exhibitor Listing
    • Floor Plan
    • Exhibiting Information
    • Join the Event Mailing List
  • About Us
    • Back
    • About Us
    • Contact Us
    • Advertise
    • Cookie Policy
    • Terms of Service
    • Privacy Statement
  • Related Sites
    • Back
    • American City & County
    • IWCE
    • Light Reading
    • IOT World Today
    • TU-Auto
  • newsletter
  • In the field
    • Back
    • Internet of Things
    • Broadband Push-to-X
    • Project 25
    • Public-Safety Broadband/FirstNet
    • Virtual/Augmented Reality
    • Land Mobile Radio
    • Long Term Evolution (LTE)
    • Applications
    • Drones/Robots
    • IoT/Smart X
    • Software
    • Subscriber Devices
    • Video
  • Call Center/Command
    • Back
    • Artificial Intelligence
    • NG911
    • Alerting Systems
    • Analytics
    • Dispatch/Call-taking
    • Incident Command/Situational Awareness
    • Tracking, Monitoring & Control
  • Network Tech
    • Back
    • Cybersecurity
    • Interoperability
    • LMR 100
    • LMR 200
    • Backhaul
    • Deployables
    • Power
    • Tower & Site
    • Wireless Networks
    • Coverage/Interference
    • Security
    • System Design
    • System Installation
    • System Operation
    • Test & Measurement
  • Operations
    • Back
    • Critical Infrastructure
    • Enterprise
    • Federal Government/Military
    • Public Safety
    • State & Local Government
    • Training
  • Regulations
    • Back
    • Narrowbanding
    • T-Band
    • Rebanding
    • TV White Spaces
    • None
    • Funding
    • Policy
    • Regional Coordination
    • Standards
  • Organizations
    • Back
    • AASHTO
    • APCO
    • DHS
    • DMR Association
    • ETA
    • EWA
    • FCC
    • IWCE
    • NASEMSO
    • NATE
    • NXDN Forum
    • NENA
    • NIST/PSCR
    • NPSTC
    • NTIA/FirstNet
    • P25 TIG
    • TETRA + CCA
    • UTC
acc.com

Commentary Newsletters


Hosted solutions will unlock the door to the future for many

Hosted solutions will unlock the door to the future for many

How will smaller agencies find the money to operate and maintain their own much-ballyhooed next-generation technologies? The answer is that they won’t. That’s why I’m so excited about the hosted-services model that some vendors are embracing, which I believe will be the saving grace.
  • Written by Urgent Communications Administrator
  • 10th November 2011

A while back, we hosted a webinar entitled, “What Keeps You Up at Night?” during which we gave our readers the opportunity to share their concerns with a panel of experts. It was a wide-ranging and frank discussion that I hope you had a chance to experience. If not, the webinar is archived at our website.

I have a few concerns about the broadband future that we’ve been hearing about for quite some time. Perhaps you do, too. Yes, it all sounds very exciting. But I’m guessing that there are at least a few of you out there who wonder how it’s all going to get done, and what unseen hazards lurk in the uncharted waters. I imagine your thoughts might be similar to those that crossed the minds of NASA engineers after President Kennedy declared that the U.S. would land a man on the moon within the ensuing decade: Say what?!? Keep in mind that, at the time, the U.S. space program lagged far behind that of the former Soviet Union.

In an effort to bring some clarity to what lies ahead, we will be hosting a webinar entitled, “Implementing Broadband Communications,” during our first IWCE/UC virtual trade show, which will be conducted on Dec. 6. I urge you to participate in this totally free event.

My concerns about the broadband future have to do with money, though they’re not what you’re probably thinking. While some worry that the so-called congressional Super Committee won’t include D Block reallocation and LTE network funding in the national debt-reduction legislation that it is supposed to propose by Nov. 23, I don’t. If the language isn’t included, some analysts believe that any standalone spectrum-policy bill would have a difficult time getting enacted next year, a major election year. So what? It would be completely illogical at this point not to reallocate the D Block to public safety, which has shown that it has plenty of lobbying muscle. It also would be political suicide, I believe, for any member of Congress to take what could be perceived as an anti-public-safety position — and failure to reallocate the D Block would qualify — particularly in a key election year. The ball might be stuck on the 5-yard-line for the moment, but they’re going to get it into the end zone.

So, I still fervently believe that these vital airwaves ultimately will be shifted to first responders, and the network that would ride on them will be funded, though likely not quite to the level that the public-safety sector hopes. My fears then concern what happens next. Many public-safety agencies are seriously cash-strapped, so much so that we’re seeing fire-station brownouts and — in some cases — closures. How will smaller agencies find the money to operate and maintain their own much-ballyhooed next-generation technologies? The answer is that they won’t.

That’s why I’m so excited about the hosted-services model that some vendors are embracing, which I believe will be the saving grace. Last month, Intrado introduced a cloud-based 911 solution working in partnership with Tiburon and Shotspotter — now known as SST — that it says will dramatically reduce a PSAP’s investment in customer premise equipment.

Meanwhile, SST introduced at last month’s International Association of Chiefs of Police conference a cloud-based service called Shotspotter Flex that gets law-enforcement agencies functionality for a lot less than if they bought the system outright, according to Ralph Clark, SST’s president and CEO. An annual subscription to the hosted service costs between $40,000 and $60,000 per square mile, compared with $250,000 to $300,000 per square mile on a CPE basis.

VIDEO: Ralph Clark at IACP conference

“It takes away a lot of the friction points in respect to the total cost of ownership and the complexity of installing sensors, standing up servers and building networks,” Clark said.

Speaking of complexity, the hosted service provides access to a national center populated with acoustics experts who analyze any gunshot alerts that the system generates — a capability that even large agencies might not possess. These experts are able to determine whether the incident involves a single shooter or multiple shooters, big guns or small guns, or automatic weapons or revolvers.

“That will change your response profile, obviously,” Clark said.

Hosted services are a game-changer and may be the key to unlocking the door to the broadband future for the majority of agencies.

What do you think? Tell us in the comment box below.

Tags: Commentary Newsletters Networks & Systems Commentary

Most Recent


  • How 5G is making cities safer, smarter, and more efficient
    It’s a scenario we’ve all experienced: an ambulance with a blaring siren racing against time to get a person in medical distress to a hospital through traffic. What we don’t see is 5G connectivity enabling paramedics to communicate with hospital staff via video conference and coordinate care in real-time before arriving at the emergency room. […]
  • 3GPP moves Release 18 freeze date to March 2024
    The latest set of 3GPP Plenary electronic meetings (e-meetings) concluded on Dec. 19, 2022. The meetings focused on the Release 18 (R18) feature progress and schedule. It was decided to extend the R18 freeze date (specifications complete for all R18 features) by three months to March 2024 to ensure the quality of the R18 3GPP […]
  • Do smart cities make safer cities?
    According to the United Nations, two out of three people will live in urban areas by 2050. This increase in city populations will undoubtedly put an even greater strain on government service providers.  Faced with the growing demand of residents for increasingly agile and efficient public services, cities must be able to adapt quickly and […]
  • Swatting has serious implications and shouldn’t be ignored
    A rash of “swatting” incidents occurred across the country in September. Swatting is the practice of falsely reporting an emergency to elicit a law-enforcement response, ideally one involving the SWAT (special weapons and tactics) team.  As an example, Cincinnati-area high school was placed on lockdown when a 911 call was made to report an active-shooter […]

Leave a comment Cancel reply

To leave a comment login with your Urgent Comms account:

Log in with your Urgent Comms account

Or alternatively provide your name, email address below:

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Related Content

  • Unlocking the power of ESInets: Different NG911 provisioning approaches exist; level of control is key differentiator
  • Ransomware? Let's call it what it really is: extortionware
  • Redefining communications for today’s mobile workforces
  • Hi-tech sewer can help safeguard public health, environment and economies

Commentary


How 5G is making cities safer, smarter, and more efficient

26th January 2023

3GPP moves Release 18 freeze date to March 2024

18th January 2023

Do smart cities make safer cities?

  • 1
6th January 2023
view all

Events


UC Ezines


IWCE 2019 Wrap Up

13th May 2019
view all

Twitter


UrgentComm

Public-safety coalition renews efforts to secure federal NG911 funding dlvr.it/ShwGfn

4th February 2023
UrgentComm

Newscan: Cyberattacks on DoE national labs draw lawmaker scrutiny dlvr.it/Shvpw3

3rd February 2023
UrgentComm

The shine begins to wear off 5G private wireless dlvr.it/Shth0P

3rd February 2023
UrgentComm

Phishers trick Microsoft into granting them ‘verified’ Cloud Partner status dlvr.it/Shqngn

2nd February 2023
UrgentComm

Shapeshifting robot can morph from a liquid to a solid dlvr.it/Shqk9K

2nd February 2023
UrgentComm

Automakers against stampede to BEV dominance dlvr.it/ShpX08

2nd February 2023
UrgentComm

FCC nominee Gigi Sohn headed for third Senate hearing dlvr.it/ShpDcZ

1st February 2023
UrgentComm

Sign up to learn how to successfully manage your Motorola ASTRO® 25 System: spr.ly/60143j8fp https://t.co/XcxiUwzN27

1st February 2023

Newsletter

Sign up for UrgentComm’s newsletters to receive regular news and information updates about Communications and Technology.

Expert Commentary

Learn from experts about the latest technology in automation, machine-learning, big data and cybersecurity.

Business Media

Find the latest videos and media from the market leaders.

Media Kit and Advertising

Want to reach our digital and print audiences? Learn more here.

DISCOVER MORE FROM INFORMA TECH

  • American City & County
  • IWCE
  • Light Reading
  • IOT World Today
  • Mission Critical Technologies
  • TU-Auto

WORKING WITH US

  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Events
  • Careers

FOLLOW Urgent Comms ON SOCIAL

  • Privacy
  • CCPA: “Do Not Sell My Data”
  • Cookie Policy
  • Terms
Copyright © 2023 Informa PLC. Informa PLC is registered in England and Wales with company number 8860726 whose registered and Head office is 5 Howick Place, London, SW1P 1WG.