Verizon commits to building dedicated public-safety LTE core network in 2018
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Verizon commits to building dedicated public-safety LTE core network in 2018
DENVER—Verizon will build a dedicated public-safety LTE core network next year that will be designed to provide public-safety customers with a viable option to the FirstNet nationwide public-safety broadband network (NPSBN) being developed by AT&T, a Verizon executive said today.
“Verizon is going to build and operate a private network core dedicated to our public-safety customers that will operate separately from our commercial core and provide our public-safety customers with access to our extensive 4G LTE nationwide network, which covers more than 2.4 million square miles,” Mike Maiorana, senior vice president of Verizon Enterprise Solutions—Public Sector, said today during an interview with IWCE’s Urgent Communications.
“We believe our customers deserve a choice and that competition drives innovation and—ultimately—best price. Bottom line, we want to keep our customers, and we want them to have the best-in-class services that technology can provide.”
FirstNet’s initial offering provides public-safety users with priority access immediately—and preemptive access by the end of the year—on AT&T’s commercial network, which operates on myriad spectrum bands. AT&T’s dedicated public-safety LTE core is scheduled to be operational by March 2018.
Verizon will offer similar capabilities across its vast commercial network, Maiorana said.
“Priority access is available now, and we will include preemption by end of year,” he said. “We will include both priority and preemption at no additional charge to ensure that our [public-safety] customers have the connectivity they need when it matters most.”
Maiorana said Verizon will complete its public-safety LTE core in 2018 but declined to provide a more specific time period for the deployment. While there are details that still need to be finalized, Maiorana said existing Verizon public-safety customers logistically will experience “a very transparent transition” from current commercial service to the new public-safety core.
“It’s a dedicated public-safety core network that we have designed that will segregate traffic and allow for quality of service, a higher degree of security and get to our customers the capabilities—such as priority and preemption—segregated from our commercial core and give our customers access to this extensive Verizon network that we’ve built,” Maiorana said.
FirstNet and AT&T officials have noted that a FirstNet subscription will include a robust application store for public safety, extensive cybersecurity, and dedicated technical support for public safety that will be available to users at all times. Maiorana provided the following comments about Verizon’s public-safety offering:
- Application store: “We will ensure that our customers have access to the applications they need to give them the services they need to do their jobs using Verizon.”
- Cybersecurity: “We believe the [dedicated public-safety] core provides inherent benefits, complemented by what we already do from a commercial-network perspective. We understand how important cyber is. We’ve got additional software-defined perimeter services that can defend against cyberattacks that we are already positioning in the marketplace. We understand that this is a critical aspect, and we plan on making sure our customers completely understand how we can help them here.”
- Technical support: “We’ve had dedicated support for this customer base for decades, including 24-by-7 technical support, centralized network support, as well local support in each market. We’ve got people that have direct interaction at the federal, state, county and local levels. This is what we’ve done we done for decades, with dedicated people who only serve government and public safety.”
Maiorana said Verizon wants its new public-safety broadband service to provide choice to first-responder agencies.
That my friends is what you
That my friends is what you call the knife twist and pull out for no-net. Done, over, finito. See the knife came out and was stuck into the heart of no-net once the idea was hatched, a true boondoggle from square one. Verizon just finished them off and is going to let no-net bleed out.
This was a commercial carrier solution from the get go, with zero reason to evolve the way it did. Verizon will have this up and running even before ATT figures out how to rip off their first customer.
Building a public safety core
Building a public safety core makes no sense. Opt-out states are supposed to build a RADIO network that interfaces to Firstnet’s core and not use a separate core network. This is the best way to ensure interoperability between opt-out and opt-in states so a separate Verizon public safety core makes no sense to me.
I am not sure who will be the
I am not sure who will be the customers of Verizon Public Safety core. Since opt out states have to use FirstNet core (themselves providing the RAN only from folks like Rivada), where does the VZ core fit in ? Is VZ trying to change the AT&T deal to allow third parties (VZ in this case) to provide the core (opt out states) as long as they it interoperates with FirstNet core.
I would like to hear the Verizon business case.
Maybe having multiple carrier
Maybe having multiple carrier networks offer Firstnet solutions, is the way Firstnet should have been created in the first place, rather than awarding a single bidder the whole country. Such a diverse solution could provide much needed competition and innovation-providing better services and coverage for less cost. Then each state could then be periodically rebid to provide the best contract. P25 was created to foster competition and cost control. Why is that not good for Firstnet
Since Verizon is coming on
Since Verizon is coming on strong, AT&T should be required to make all of the necessary technical info available, so that Verizon or whoever else, can offer a service that is seamlessly compatible with them. If not, we may end up with different network offerings trying to wipe each other out. That happened with AM Stereo! Now there is no AM Stereo!
Opt in, opt out, it doesn’t
Opt in, opt out, it doesn’t make a difference. Verizon will have this built, and operational before ATT even figures out how it is supposed to all work. Here is the kicker, Verizon is going to make it cheap for public safety, so cheap that it’s going kick no-net square in the pants. Face it, Verizon has the best coverage and largest foot print, and their stuff works well. This my friend was a well played game of chess on verizons part.
From global perspective it is
From global perspective it is very encouraging to see major commercial operators’ interest in critical communications market and willingness to recognise the requirements for high availability in critical data services.
Also in general competition in all markets is very good, however, at the same time it is very important to ensure multiagency interoperability also in cases some users work in one network and some in other. Further, mutual-aid in terms of national roaming is worth considering should there be a malfunction in one of the service. After all the goal is ensure first responders safety and security and equip them with purpose fulfilling tools to perform in their duty.
Almost 5,900 days after 9-11,
Almost 5,900 days after 9-11, the carriers finally have acted. Shame on everyone involved.