UK Home Office inks deal with IBM-led vendor group, including SamsungUK Home Office inks deal with IBM-led vendor group, including Samsung

United Kingdom (UK) Home Office yesterday announced that a vendor group led by IBM and Samsung Electronics have been contracted to provide user services for the much-delayed LTE-based Emergency Services Network (ESN) that is expected to replace the Airwave TETRA network for mission-critical public-safety communications.

This vendor partnership will fill the void left when Motorola Solutions and the UK Home Office ended their ESN user-services relationship more than a year ago. IBM and Samsung had been identified as winners of the ESN user-services contract in numerous media reports during the past several months, but yesterday’s announcement cited other vendor partners in the group: Ericsson, Frequentis, Exponential-e and Palo Alto Networks.

A press release posted by the UK Home Office states that the UK “government is committing to delivering the project as quickly as possible” and notes that regular project meetings will be conducted in an effort to keep the project on track. Those meetings will be chaired by Dame Diana Johnson, who is the minister for policing, fire and crime prevention.

“Every day, our brave emergency services help members of the public facing life-or-death situations,” Johnson said in a prepared statement. “We must do everything we can to maximize the chances of successful outcomes, and communications between frontline staff is critical to ensuring this. 

“This government is working tirelessly to support this project, making sure it is delivered in a timely and cost-effective manner, and IBM will be an important part of bringing the Emergency Services Network online.”

This ESN user-services contract covers a period of seven years, with a two-year option, according to information provided on IBM’s website. This would mean the contract is through December 2031, with the option extending through December 2033.

This user-services vendor group is expected to complement the ESN mobile services being provided by BT Group, the parent company of UK wireless carrier EE. Last month, the Home Office announced that it signed a seven-year, £1.29 billion ($1.58 billion in today’s exchange rate) contract with BT Group.

Financial terms of the user-services deal with the IBM-led vendor group were not disclosed in the Home Office press release. Multiple media reports prior to yesterday’s announcement indicated that the user-services contract would be worth a little more than $1 billion, but many reports today state that the amount is as much as 1.6 billion pounds ($1.96 billion).

With vendors in place for both mobile services and user services, the UK Home Office officials’ goal is to ensure that the ESN is operational by the end of the decade, so the Airwave TETRA network can be retired. Last year, the Home Office notified Motorola Solutions that it would need a three-year extension—through December 2029—to operate the Airwave system.

Rahul Kalia, managing partner at IBM UK and Ireland, expressed confidence that IBM and its technology partners can make the UK vision for ESN a reality.

“We are proud to support the Emergency Services Network (ESN) in delivering a secure and resilient communications platform to empower frontline emergency services,” Kahlia said in a prepared statement. “Working with our ecosystem partners, we will deliver mission-critical services for first responders to enhance safety in our communities across Great Britain. We look forward to working with the government to deliver this in a timely and cost-effective manner.”

Samsung is expected to provide the mission-critical-push-to-talk (MCPTT) capability, which will be vital to the Home Office’s ultimate goal of migrating all UK public-safety communications to the ESN, according to multiple sources. Samsung technology powers the FirstNet PTT service in the U.S.—an offering that has been praised for its performance but has seen lackluster adoption amid concerns about interoperability with other LMR and broadband push-to-talk services.

Everth Flores, Samsung’s vice president and head of Samsung Networks Europe, cited the criticality of the ESN effort.

“As mission-critical communications are of the utmost importance for the nation's security and protection of its citizens, Samsung is proud to take part in this program to evolve public-safety networks in the UK,” Flores said in a prepared statement.  

“At the heart of this collaboration lies Samsung's undisputed technological competence, on top of the solid trust that we have garnered with our successful mission-critical solution deployments around the globe. Harnessing the momentum of this milestone, Samsung will continue to contribute to building a more secure, connected society.”

Exponential-e—the lone UK company selected as part of the ESN user-services contract—will “develop mission-critical solutions” for the ESN, according to the company’s press release about the matter.

“We are honored to provide a key role in this vital program, which represents a transformative step in modernizing communications for emergency services across the UK,” Exponential-e CEO Lee Wade said in a prepared statement. “This project represents a tremendous opportunity for Exponential-e to expand our presence in the public safety sector and build on our experience in providing high-performance network and managed services.”

Frequentis also will “deliver solutions for the Emergency Services Network,” according to a company press release.

“We are thrilled to be working with IBM and the Emergency Services Mobile Communications Programme, to deliver solutions for user services for the Emergency Services Network,” Robert Nitsch, Frequentis vice president for public safety, said in a prepared statement..

Palo Alto Networks will be tasked with ensuring the cybersecurity of the ESN, according to a company press release about the ESN contract.

“We are proud to be part of such a critical national-infrastructure project, alongside IBM and other partners to ensure the security and communications resilience of the Home Office's Emergency Services Mobile Communications Programme,” Helmut Reisinger—Palo Alto Networks CEO for EMEA and LATAM—said in a prepared statement. “We commend the UK's Home Office for their vision for secure modern IT transformation through security platformization."