Andy Seybold’s Public Safety Advocate, April 10, 2015

The 13th of April is when LA-RICS will have to present a plan to the NTIA/FirstNet regarding their deployment plans and how much they can really accomplish by the end of September when the grant runs out. Only Congress can change or extend the expiration date of the grant I am told. I hope they have a workable plan to present, we need LA-RICS as the first Major metropolitan Public Safety Broadband system up and running. In addition, according to LA-RICS some of the towers in question were also going to be used to provide additional coverage for the new 700 MHz trunked radio system.

I am working on my comments to respond to the FirstNet “Further Proposal Interpretations of Parts of the Middle Class Tax and Relief and Job Creation Act of 2012”. I am hoping that a lot of comments will be received and that the majority will uphold my view that if a State opts out and builds their own system to connect to FirstNet, that FirstNet partners will still have access to that spectrum on a secondary basis and that any income derived from the use of the spectrum goes directly to the lease holder and to FirstNet and not the States. If the states believe, rightly or wrongly, that by opting out they will have access to a monetary wind-fall then they will opt out and there will be little, if any incentive for partners to work with FirstNet on a nationwide basis. The success of FirstNet is dependent upon at least one partner to assist with the network build-out and operation. There are other parts of the document which are also important but to me this is the most critical point raised.

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Apr 10 04:00 ATIS is seeking input from all stakeholders in identifying how to meet critical public-safety-related needs during the migration. In November, the FCC …

FCC’s text to 911 program expandingRCR Wireless News via Google Alerts
Apr  9 10:40 One of the policies implemented by the FCC was the Text to 911 Readiness and Certification Registry, which lists public safety call center operations …

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Apr  9 05:45 Leading California’s public safety community is the California Governors Office of …

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Apr  8 12:30 As a result, the technology is under consideration for purchase and deployment as a public safety broadband wireless solution by area municipal and …

read moreNPSTC via Google Alerts
Apr  8 00:25 nationwide public-safety broadband network (NPSBN). Following are recent activities in which NPSTC has been engaged to support public-safety.

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Apr  7 22:40 Although the projects were bid separately, Motorola Solutions is the vendor for both the public-safety broadband LTE and narrowband LMR systems …

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Apr  7 19:35 If you ask Lt. Thomas Randall of the Brazos County (Texas) Sheriff’s Office for his thoughts on public-safety broadband, you might want to have a seat …

CenturyLink to Pay Record Fine for 911 OutageChannel Partners via Google Alerts
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First Responder Network Authority Seeks Comment on Proposed Interpretations of Parts of Middle …Targeted News Service via Google Alerts
Apr  7 08:50 The First Responder Network Authority (FirstNet) published a notice and request for comments in the Federal Register on March 13, 2015, titled …

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Apr  3 15:15 The FCC voted on the Open Internet Order net neutrality about six weeks ago. But nobody ever accused the wheels of bureaucracy of turning …

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Apr  9 14:00 News editors obtained the following quote from the background information supplied by the inventors: “A distributed antenna system (‘DAS’) may be …

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Feds Hit AT&T with $25 Million Fine for Stolen Customer DataNewsFactor
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MissionCritical Communications, Radio Resource International, and Public Safety Report74.63.161 via Google Alerts
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ACA petitions FCC to help control content costsCED via Google Alerts
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Cellphones alert users to weather threatsThe Herald via Google Alerts
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Apr  8 12:15 The FCC voted 3-2 to approve rules to reclassify broadband Internet as a …

New Zealand: Are You Ready for Narrowbanding?SmartCom Hub – Motorola Solutions via Google Alerts
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AT&T: VoLTE needed to support voice roaming with CDMA carriers in 700 MHz bandZaacom via Google Alerts
Apr  7 20:25 AT&T Mobility (NYSE: T) said it will need to wait until it deploys Voice over LTE nationwide to support CDMA voice roaming on its 700 MHz spectrum.

France will whip out 700 MHz when increasing broadband, although the United Kingdom balked …Tech Sentinel via Google Alerts
Apr  7 20:25 United Kingdom mobile phone coverage will lag behind the rest of Europe this year: it is now France want to sell the valuable spectrum space, 700 …

FCC – Public Safety And Homeland Security Bureau Announces Update To PSAP Text-To-911 …Colorado Media.Net via Google Alerts
Apr  7 17:20 From the FCC: Public Safety And Homeland Security Bureau Announces Update To PSAP Text-To-911 Readiness And Certification Registry …

xG Technology Announces Successful Deployment of xMax Pilot Network for BayRICS in Three …MarketWatch via Google Alerts
Apr  7 11:21 As a result of these demonstrations, xMax is under consideration for purchase and deployment as a public safety broadband wireless solution by area …

Speed gap: Broadband service still lacking in area’s rural reachesPetoskey News-Review via Google Alerts
Apr  6 15:30 … beyond the reach of high-speed service that meets the FCC’s benchmark. …

Alan Tilles, Chairman of Telecommunications, Shulman RogersFederalNewsRadio.com via Google Alerts
Apr  6 09:50 It’s called the First Responder Network Authority, or FirstNet. Even with a $7 billion budget, the project has encountered a number of obstacles.

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Bill calls for GPS alternativeThe Hill via Google Alerts
Apr  3 12:45 “This would help first responders and law enforcement more effectively …

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The White Space Black HoleAT&T Public Policy Blog via Google Alerts
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