Monday, March 26, 2012

Public Safety Broadband: Measuring Success � ANDREWSEYBOLD.com

Public Safety Broadband: Measuring Success � ANDREWSEYBOLD.com: Now that the 700 MHz D-Block has been reallocated to Public Safety to provide 20 MHz (10X10 MHz) of total nationwide broadband spectrum, funding, and a new governance organization, how do we measure the success of this new network? I believe it is important to be able to provide both those who doubt its viability and those who might be interested in forming public/private partnerships with a way to measure the level of success as the network is built and put into operation.

Thursday, March 22, 2012

700 MHz public-safety LTE network won't break ground for a year - FierceBroadbandWireless

700 MHz public-safety LTE network won't break ground for a year - FierceBroadbandWireless: Construction on the public-safety LTE network planned for 700 MHz D-block spectrum will likely not begin for at least a year because the government must first accomplish considerable planning and setup work.

FirstNet, the authority charged with managing the public-safety network, must be established by the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) by Aug. 20. Once FirstNet's 15-member board is set up, it will begin addressing a host of formative tasks, including releasing a request for proposal (RFP) for construction of the nationwide network, which it can only do after it consults with representatives of each state, according to an article in Urgent Communications. The publication quoted Anna Gomez, NTIA's deputy assistant secretary, as saying this RFP process is going to take several months to complete once it is initiated.

D-Block network won't be available for first responders for a while - Tony Romm - POLITICO.com

D-Block network won't be available for first responders for a while - POLITICO.com
It took years for lawmakers to approve a wireless broadband network for police officers and firefighters.
And it’ll be a few more years, at least, before that system is available to first responders nationwide. With new resources from Congress in hand, regulators and public safety agencies are just now beginning to translate their vision for an upgraded communications system into reality. How they meet a series of tough benchmarks over the next six months will be critical to the success or failure of the long-sought network.

In the process, regulators seem poised to grapple with the likelihood that a nationwide public safety broadband system could prove more costly than Congress imagined, and just as difficult and expensive to build and operate as critics have suggested.