News FirstNet has about 5.3 million connections, 27K agencies, according to AT&T 24th October 2023 FirstNet provides about 5.3 million connections to approximately 27,000 public-safety agencies subscribing to the nationwide public-safety broadband network (NPSBN) as of the end of September, according to figures released last week by AT&T, the FirstNet Authority contractor tasked with building and maintaining the system. After surpassing the 5 million-connections threshold during the second quarter, FirstNet […]
Partner content The telecom industry looks rotten to the core 22nd October 2023 These are dark times for the telecom sector – as cheerless as this correspondent has witnessed since he arrived on the industry scene (not as a reporter) nearly 25 years ago. To all but diehards, the 5G standard that was supposed to unlock opportunities has failed to make telcos fitter and happier, leaving them winded […]
Partner content Ligado sues the government, claims U.S. military stole its spectrum 20th October 2023 Ligado Networks on Friday filed an explosive lawsuit essentially alleging that the U.S. government took $39 billion worth of its spectrum without paying for it. “High-ranking US government officials have acted deliberately to deprive an American company of its rightfully licensed property,” said Ivan Seidenberg, chairman of Ligado’s board and a former chairman of Verizon, in […]
Partner content Nokia to cut up to 14,000 jobs in dire warning about market 20th October 2023 Chill winds are blowing over the Nordic countries and their network-equipment-making giants. Just two days after Sweden’s Ericsson published a gloomy set of results, Finland’s Nokia served up further misery for investors and staff. “Pretty serious,” was how CEO Pekka Lundmark described the current frostiness on a call with reporters, downplaying hopes of a big improvement […]
News FCC opens 6 GHz band to very-low-power (VLP) unlicensed devices amid interference concerns 20th October 2023 FCC commissioners today unanimously approved the use of very-low-power (VLP) unlicensed devices to operate in the 6 GHz band that many critical-communications officials consider to be the foundation of mission-critical and business-critical networks’ backhaul solutions. FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel cited the importance of unlicensed devices to the U.S. economy and society at large, with Wi-Fi […]
News Verizon takes initial step toward providing mobile edge-compute solution for enterprises, public safety 18th October 2023 Verizon recently announced the first deployment of its Mobile Onsite Network-as-a-Service (NaaS) vehicle that is designed to deliver mobile edge compute (MEC) and private-network connectivity to an enterprise location, but officials for the carrier giant have noted potential public-safety use cases that could be met with the solution in the future. Developed with multiple partners, […]
Partner content SpaceX pushes ‘direct to cell’ business forward 16th October 2023 SpaceX, the rocket company backed by the world’s richest man, outlined its plans to offer a “direct to cell” service worldwide starting next year via a new website. Company officials touted the new site on social media. “Direct to Cell works with existing LTE phones wherever you can see the sky. No changes to hardware, firmware or […]
Commentary September 3GPP Plenary meetings feature Release 18 progress, Release 19 beginnings 13th October 2023 The 3GPP Plenary meetings took place September 11-15, 2023, in Bangalore, India. The Technical Specification Group (TSG) reports below highlight continued progress on Release 18 (R18) features of interest for public safety, including steady development on the stage 3 protocol work, which is the last stage in 3GPP standards development. The Plenary meetings included planning […]
News LA-RICS P25 system set for final acceptance in November 12th October 2023 After more than a decade of effort, the Los Angeles Regional Interoperable Communications System (LA-RICS) expects to complete the final-acceptance stage of the organization’s Project 25 (P25) system next month, according to information provided this week to the LA-RICS Joint Powers Agreement (JPA) board. Originally slated for completion in 2020, the LA-RICS P25 system last […]
Partner content Huawei equipment may be stuck in some US networks indefinitely 12th October 2023 The FCC is giving some of the US companies in its “rip and replace” program more time to tear Huawei and ZTE equipment out of their networks. Importantly, the agency agreed to delay some deadlines due to the roughly $3 billion funding gap that Congress appears unwilling to fill. “As a small, rural operation, we lack the […]
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? 2 24th March 2024
