Public-Safety Broadband/FirstNet

FirstNet finance committee delays vote to recommend draft RFP ‘for a few weeks’

• 24th March 2015

FirstNet board member tomorrow will not vote to approve the complete draft request for proposal (RFP), as many had hoped. Instead, FirstNet’s finance committee today opted against voting to recommend the proposed draft RFP until staff members can address a few lingering business-plan questions at another meeting “in a few weeks,” according to Tim Bryan, chairman of FirstNet’s finance committee.

NTIA releases second phase of planning grants as FirstNet identifies data for states to collect

• 24th March 2015

States and territories can use $58 million in planning grants from the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) to gather data in their jurisdictions regarding their first responders’ needs for coverage, capacity and other key functionalities from FirstNet’s nationwide public-safety broadband network, NTIA and FirstNet announce.

FirstNet should not rely on state and local governments as key network-infrastructure partners, Mirgon says

• 24th March 2015

State and local governments are not reliable enough to be major infrastructure partners for the nationwide public-safety broadband network being built by FirstNet, according to Richard Mirgon, a consultant and former president of the Association of Public-Safety Communications Officials (APCO).

Firefighters’ union claims of RF dangers jeopardizes LA-RICS public-safety LTE project

• 23rd March 2015

Complaints from a firefighters union that radio-frequency (RF) emissions from LTE sites being installed at several Los Angeles-area fire stations are a health hazard could derail the regional public-safety LTE system, according to an official with the Los Angeles Regional Interoperable Communications System (LA-RICS), which is building the network.

LA-RICS has reduced the number of LTE sites in its planned deployment from 232 to 177, according to LA-RICS Executive Director Pat Mallon.

Texas: Lesia Dickson talks about state’s online FirstNet course offering

• 20th March 2015

Lesia Dickson, outreach and education coordinator for the Texas Public Safety Broadband Program, discusses the state’s online-education initiative that is designed to inform stakeholders about FirstNet, which is tasked with building a nationwide public-safety broadband network for first responders. Although created for FirstNet stakeholders in the state of Texas, the information is applicable to anyone in the country.

Rivada Networks: Peter Tenerelli explains proposal to let FirstNet generate revenue from excess capacity on its LTE network

• 20th March 2015

Peter Tenerelli, director of technology adoption for Rivada Networks, describes how the company’s dynamic-spectrum-arbitrage (DSA) technology and associated auction market would let commercial operators bid for excess capacity on the FirstNet system, which can generate revenue that ultimately will lower the fees that public-safety entities would pay to use the dedicated LTE network.

FirstNet system will support non-mission-critical voice from Day 1, officials say

• 19th March 2015

​LAS VEGAS—FirstNet officials yesterday offered insights about progress toward building the much-anticipated nationwide public-safety broadband network, including a commitment that the system will support voice calls from the outset.

JVCKENWOOD: Masa Hishida demonstrates hybrid LTE/P25 portable radio, cites 2018 target for commercial release

• 19th March 2015

Masa Hishida, senior engineering specialist for JVC Kenwood’s broadband task force, displays a functional prototype of the company’s hybrid LTE/P25 device. JVC Kenwood hopes to release the radio in a smaller form factor in 2018, Hishida says.

Rivada Networks: Peter Tenerelli explains proposal to ensure public-safety prioritization, preemption on a shared FirstNet system

• 18th March 2015

Peter Tenerelli, director of technology adoption for Rivada Networks, describes how the company’s dynamic-spectrum-arbitrage (DSA) technology could be used ensure that public-safety personnel have immediate access to any capacity on the FirstNet broadband network when needed but also support revenue-generating commercial users most of the time.

Rivada Networks: Peter Tenerelli, explains proposal to ensure public-safety prioritization, preemption on shared FirstNet system

• 18th March 2015

Peter Tenerelli, director of technology adoption for Rivada Networks, describes how the company’s dynamic-spectrum-arbitrage (DSA) technology could be used ensure that public-safety personnel have immediate access to any capacity on the FirstNet broadband network when needed but also support revenue-generating commercial users most of the time.