News FCC plans vote on Anterix proposal for 900 MHz private LTE for utilities, enterprises 22nd April 2020 FCC commissioners next month are expected to approve rules that would let Anterix transition its narrowband LMR spectrum in the 900 MHz band to a contiguous block of private LTE airwaves designed to support mission-critical broadband applications for utilities and other enterprises. For Anterix—known as pdvWireless until the company changed its name last June—the FCC […]
News California fire district leveraging FirstNet, BeOn PTT from L3Harris to save significant LMR costs 20th April 2020 One rural California fire district plans to lower its future LMR capital costs about 60% by supplementing its VHF radio system with BeOn push-to-talk service from L3Harris delivered over FirstNet as part of a local public-private partnership that includes sharing tower sites, according to the fire chief spearheading the plan. Frank Frievalt, fire chief of […]
Partner content Will 5G buildout slow or accelerate in the COVID-19 era? 19th April 2020 While COVID-19 has ground the economy to a halt in many corners of the U.S., the picture for 5G buildout could flourish long term, with caveats, say industry watchers. 5G may take a hit in the short and medium term given spread of COVID-19 globally and resulting supply chain disruption, 5G hardware delays and general effects of […]
Partner content Treating our diseased economy locally during COVID-19 pandemic 19th April 2020 On March 27, President Donald Trump signed the federal Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act into law as the rest of the country feverishly tried to weather the coronavirus pandemic. The CARES Act establishes the Coronavirus Relief Fund, which gives states, tribal governments and local governments $150 billion to help cover any unbudgeted […]
Partner content Ericsson shows unease as coronavirus crisis continues 17th April 2020 Two weeks into the second quarter and Ericsson has started to pepper its investor updates with vaguely unsettling words like “implication” and “mitigation.” Due to publish its first-quarter results next week, the Swedish equipment maker has clung to short-term guidance of “limited to no impact on customers” from COVID-19. Beyond the March-ending period, the outlook […]
News COVID-19 realities forcing fire chiefs to propose significant budget cuts 17th April 2020 Fire chiefs through the western United States are being asked to propose budget cuts between 10% and 25% for their departments—often including EMS service—as local governments try to fund operations in the face of dramatic tax-revenue declines caused by stay-at-home measures designed to slow the spread of COVID-19. “We’re hearing that, broad-based across the West, […]
Partner content 5G promises much but can’t answer all autonomous-vehicle (AV) questions 16th April 2020 The connected, 5G future has many promises that come with big demands. As the next generation in mobile connectivity it offers the capability to process terabytes of data per hour, enable faster over-the-air updates and some proponents of the technology say they can achieve this with near-zero latency. Yet the question remains can they? Let’s […]
Audio Pryme: Dave George discusses new accessories, industry trends 14th April 2020 Pryme CEO Dave George outlines his company’s new products such as Bluetooth accessories and provides his perspective on industry direction, including which use cases are proving most popular for push-to-talk-over-cellular (PoC) deployments.
Partner content The security conundrum of 5G network slicing 14th April 2020 One benefit of moving to a standalone 5G network is that it makes it possible for wireless operators to implement network slicing, which means they can run multiple dedicated networks that all share a common, physical infrastructure. Each network slice can have its own characteristics and identity – but that also means it will have […]
News MCPTT-based FirstNet PTT a ‘game-changer,’ potential LMR replacement, N.J. police captain says 13th April 2020 FirstNet PTT service—provided by AT&T and built on the 3GPP mission-critical-push-to-talk (MCPTT) standard—delivers the performance that public safety needs and can be an LMR alternative for some agencies, according to the captain of a New Jersey police department that conducted a beta trial of the new offering. “I think it’s really going to be a […]
Latest 3GPP standards-development work includes new classes of HPUE, progress on mission-critical services 1 22nd April 2024
Is LMR the best solution for first responders? Should 4.9 GHz license go to the FirstNet Authority? 3 24th March 2024
Video Check out key takeaways from Disaster Management Symposium webinars, register to view archives Video: Opening of the Expo Hall on day three of IWCE 2023 Lynk CEO Charles Miller: The sky’s the limit