News Public-safety T-Band systems face uncertain future, although hopes for successful auction appear slim 15th August 2019 BALTIMORE—Public-safety LMR licensees operating on T-Band spectrum continue to face uncertainty, even as a federally mandated deadline requiring the FCC to begin a process to auction these airwaves is just 18 months away, according to an FCC official. Conducting a T-Band auction would be contrary to the recommendation of the General Accounting Office (GAO), which […]
News Plans for FirstNet MCPTT unveiling ‘all on track,’ AT&T’s Sambar says 14th August 2019 BALTIMORE—AT&T testing of 3GPP-compliant mission-critical-push-to-talk (MCPTT) technology is “going really well” and the carrier plans to offer the service later this year from multiple providers that will be announced separately, according to an AT&T executive. Earlier this year, AT&T stated that FirstNet users will be able to subscribe to MCPTT services from multiple vendors that […]
News FirstNet Authority releases initial investment Roadmap at APCO 2019 13th August 2019 BALTIMORE—FirstNet Authority board Chairman Ed Horowitz today announced the release of the new Roadmap that is designed to guide the organization’s investment decisions to evolve the FirstNet public-safety broadband network being built by AT&T. Horowitz made the announcement during a speech during a breakfast gathering at the APCO 2019 event, noting that the end product […]
News AT&T, Assured Wireless developing high-powered user equipment (HPUE) to extend effective FirstNet coverage 13th August 2019 BALTIMORE—FirstNet users soon may be able use high-power user equipment (HPUE) on 700 MHz Band 14 spectrum that is expected to extend the effective range from a cell site by 80% triple the effective coverage area and enhance in-building coverage—characteristics that AT&T’s FirstNet leader calls a “game changer.” Chris Sambar, AT&T’s senior vice president for […]
News FirstNet deployment passes 65% threshold, connections top 750,000 for almost 9,000 agencies, AT&T says 13th August 2019 Planned FirstNet deployment on 700 MHz Band 14 spectrum is more than 65% complete, and the nationwide public-safety broadband network is providing more than 750,000 connections to almost 9,000 public-safety agencies, according to the AT&T official leading the carrier’s FirstNet initiative. Chris Sambar, AT&T’s senior vice president for the FirstNet program, said that the carrier […]
Video AT&T: Fred Scalera, Ryan Burchnell highlight FirstNet subscribers’ increased use of deployables 13th August 2019 Fred Scalera (left) and Ryan Burchnell of FIrstNet, Built by AT&T, outline the increased demand for deployable LTE coverage this year by FirstNet subscribers, who can request such communications support at no additional cost. Scalera and Burchnell spoke to IWCE’s Urgent Communications Editor Donny Jackson during the APCO 2019 event in Baltimore.
News FirstNet Authority set to unveil investment roadmap within weeks, officials say 12th August 2019 BALTIMORE—By the end of this month, the FirstNet Authority hopes to release the initial roadmap outlining organizational priorities for investing potentially more than $15 billion into the FirstNet nationwide public-safety broadband system being built by AT&T, FirstNet Authority officials said yesterday. Jeremy Zollo, FirstNet Authority executive director for enterprise strategy, said that FirstNet Authority officials […]
News Kansas 911 organization selects AT&T, RapidDeploy to shift key PSAP solutions to the cloud 10th August 2019 Most public-safety answering points in Kansas are expected to process 911 calls with the help RapidDeploy’s cloud-native Nimbus computer-aided-dispatch (CAD) system that will be deployed through an AT&T contract with the Kansas 911 Coordinating Council. This marks the latest initiative by the Kansas 911 Coordinating Council to migrate PSAPs in the state to a next-generation […]
Audio Siyata Mobile: Glenn Kennedy talks about phablet, FirstNet certification, AT&T applications 9th August 2019 Glenn Kennedy, Siyata Mobile’s vice president of sales, outlines some recent wins for the company’s Uniden UV350 phablet, which has received FirstNet certification and earned a $1 million school-bus contract during the past few months. This week, Siyata Mobile announced that UV350 supports the AT&T Workforce Manager application and the carrier’s enhanced push-to-talk (EPTT) […]
News Motorola Solutions bullish on video, control-center offerings, projects little revenue from FirstNet 2nd August 2019 Motorola Solutions’ recent purchases of companies in the video-security and command-center spaces are paying dividends, but being a partner on AT&T’s FirstNet team is not helping the company’s bottom line, Motorola Solutions CEO Greg Brown said yesterday. Brown highlighted the acquisitions—the most recent of which was a $271 million purchase of WatchGuard, a private vehicle-camera […]
Is LMR the best solution for first responders? Should 4.9 GHz license go to the FirstNet Authority? 24th March 2024
FirstNet Authority reauthorization needed as public-safety-driven network evolution proceeds 16th March 2024