Mobile Voice Commentary

Commentary

Three keys to success for FirstNet 3.0

We set a high bar for excellence at the First Responder Network Authority. That’s because our work supports public safety. Lives depend on it. Our mission is to deliver the best, most reliable communications for public safety. We stood up a nationwide broadband network with our network partner—AT&T—in record time. We have created a network […]

Commentary

September 3GPP Plenary meetings feature Release 18 progress, Release 19 beginnings

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 […]

Commentary

Updated: How ‘sidelink’ peer-to-peer communications can enhance public-safety operations

Editor’s note: A previous version of this column was posted that included only the first portion of the article—a mistake by the editor. IWCE’s Urgent Communications regrets the error and apologizes for any inconvenience. When first responders are called to action, they need reliable communications to coordinate an effective public-safety response. Public-safety personnel understand this […]

Commentary

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 […]

Commentary

Reflections on recent LTE outages

Rogers Communications Canada experienced a national service outage on July 8, 2022, that halted LTE communications for millions of Canadians, including public-safety agencies counting on mobile broadband for operations. In light of this jarring failure, should public-safety leaders rethink plans to collapse all wireless communications onto a single wireless technology platform operated by a service […]

Commentary

Complacency is not an option

A rising tide of public-safety broadband networks (PSBN) around the globe creates opportunities for agencies delivering police, fire, and emergency medical services. But along with the chance to rethink traditional voice communications and add new broadband-enabled tools, agencies must assess and plan for the risk of network failure. Networks designed for public-safety operations incorporate layered […]

Commentary

It’s time to think strategically about portable firefighter radios

The early days of handheld public-safety portable radio devices did not bring specialized designs for a firefighter’s unique requirements. Police, fire, EMS, bus system managers, and others received the same device without regard for different work environments. From a purchasing standpoint, the strategy made sense: it was simple and enabled volume pricing advantages. But as […]

Commentary

Redefining communications for today’s mobile workforces

Communicating with personnel was already a challenge for companies with workers in the field, deskless staff who travel, as well as widespread workforces in siloed divisions and office locations. Now that COVID-19 has all but eradicated traditional in-person relationships and many in-office team members are now working remotely, keeping everyone synced is an even more […]

Commentary

FirstNet Authority standards director recaps June 3GPP Plenary Meetings in Newport Beach, Calif.

The June quarterly Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) meetings in Newport Beach, Calif., addressed standards in several areas relevant to the evolution of the public-safety broadband communications and the Nationwide Public Safety Broadband Network (NPSBN). The major topic across the 3GPP plenary meetings was planning for 3GPP Release 17 (R17). This release will be built […]

Commentary

Trick or treat? Next few months could influence direction of critical-communications world

It’s Halloween, a time that celebrates the unusual and surprising. Even when you can anticipate that something is going to happen, it can be difficult to predict whether it will scare you to death or result in sweet rewards that can put a smile on your face. A similar sense of anxious expectation is surrounding […]

Mobile Voice Commentary

Commentary

Three keys to success for FirstNet 3.0

Commentary

September 3GPP Plenary meetings feature Release 18 progress, Release 19 beginnings

Commentary

Updated: How ‘sidelink’ peer-to-peer communications can enhance public-safety operations

Commentary

3GPP moves Release 18 freeze date to March 2024

Commentary

Reflections on recent LTE outages

Commentary

Complacency is not an option

Commentary

It’s time to think strategically about portable firefighter radios

Commentary

Redefining communications for today’s mobile workforces

Commentary

FirstNet Authority standards director recaps June 3GPP Plenary Meetings in Newport Beach, Calif.

Commentary

Trick or treat? Next few months could influence direction of critical-communications world

Commentary

Latest 3GPP standards-development work includes new classes of HPUE, progress on mission-critical services

Is LMR the best solution for first responders? Should 4.9 GHz license go to the FirstNet Authority?

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