FirstNet or SecondNet? The Middle-Class Tax Relief Act of 2012 in the section known as Title VI created FirstNet and set out the rules for building a nationwide public safety broadband network and a public-private partnership in order to build the In 2012, Congress passed and the then President of the United States signed into law the Middle-Class network using mostly private rather than federal funding. After five long years, FirstNet issued a Request for Proposal (RFP) and three companies submitted proposals (Verizon Wireless was not one of these). After much deliberation and after two of the three companies were disqualified, the contract was awarded to AT&T.

This past week, Verizon came out of hibernation and declared it will also be building out a nationwide public safety broadband network with all the elements of a network with access to the FirstNet spectrum known as Band 14 (or as some old timers call it, the D Block) which is licensed by the FCC to FirstNet. This new Verizon “Public Safety Grade” network will include pre-emption for first responders on the Verizon LTE network and a Public Safety Evolved Packet Core (EPC) that will be separate from the current Verizon back-end system.

So now we have the approved FirstNet partnership with AT&T moving forward and the sleeping giant has suddenly awakened, looked around, and raised its hand. I have to say that as an early proponent of a nationwide a public safety broadband network that will provide full interoperability between all agencies regardless of where they are in the United States or its territories, I was really surprised and dismayed at Verizon’s attempt to hang on to a few million subscribers out of the 146 million it reported in April of this year, and its apparent lack of concern for creating more, not less, interoperability issues and challenges.

This is especially when Verizon could not be bothered to bid on the FirstNet RFP, stating publicly at the time that it had little interest in low-band spectrum either with the 600-MHz auction or the FirstNet spectrum since it believed spectrum higher in frequency would be more useful for small cell or 5G technology, on which it seemed to be betting the farm. Read the Full Blog Here

Nevada to Transform Communications for Public Safety; Governor Sandoval Approves Buildout … – GuruFocus.com Aug 17 12:50 … to accept the FirstNet and AT&T* plan to deliver a wireless broadband network to the …

AT&T : Arizona opts into FirstNet first responder network – 4-Traders Aug 17 07:50 The State of Arizona is opting into FirstNet. With this decision, FirstNet and AT&T will deliver a specialized wireless broadband network to Arizonas …

AT&T : Kansas joins highway pact – 4-Traders Aug 16 23:50 At a press conference, Brownback opted into a partnership between the First Responder Network Authority — FirstNet — and AT&T , which will build out …

Verizon takes on AT&T with its dedicated first responders network – Wireless Estimator Aug 17 11:50 FirstNet Chairwoman Sue Swenson informed Congress in 2015 that the broadband network for first responders will be successful if the private sector …

GWTCA Asks FCC to Release 800 MHz Spectrum in Regions that Completed Rebanding – MissionCritical Aug 17 10:03 The Government Wireless Technology & Communications Association (GWTCA) urged the FCC to release new 800 MHz National Public Safety Planning Advisory Committee (NPSPAC) frequencies in all other remaining areas other than the Mexican border where rebanding has been completed. read more

9-1-1 Groups Release Resource on NG 9-1-1, FirstNet – MissionCritical Aug 17 10:03 The National 911 Program partnered with the National Association of State 911 Administrators (NASNA) to create a resource to help state and local authorities understand how next-generation 9-1-1 (NG 9-1-1) and the nationwide public-safety broadband network governed by the First Responder Network Authority (FirstNet), are similar, different and how they can work together to improve emergency communication. read more

Firstnet’s progress lauded at APCO as Arizona joins the public safety network – Wireless Estimator Aug 16 16:35 FirstNet Chairwoman Sue Swenson extolled the progress of the country’s public safety network during her presentation today at APCO International’s …

City of Huntsville partners with Southern Linc to deliver mission critical LTE wireless data services – Cellular News Aug 16 16:30 This new data service agreement is specifically designed to help our first responders better serve our community,” stated Bill Steiner , Information …

Live from APCO2017: Cybersecurity the Next Public Safety Battleground – AGL Media Group Aug 16 14:10 As APCO officially kicked off the formal part of the conference, it soon became obvious that the predominant topic was cybersecurity attacks and how …

Public Safety Finally Joins the Mainstream with FirstNet, Chairwoman Tells APCO Attendees – Government Technology Aug 16 00:40 Public Safety Finally Joins the Mainstream with FirstNet, Chairwoman Tells APCO …

FCC auction to provide $2 billion for rural broadband – Brownfield Aug 10 05:00 The Federal Communications Commission says it will hold what it calls a “reverse auction” to provide nearly $2 billion over ten years to expand high-speed Internet access to rural areas that aren’t currently served. It’s the first time the FCC will use an auction to allocate Connect America Fund support for broadband and voice services in rural areas.   The FCC says the “reverse auction” ” to be underway in 2018 ” will enable the agency to expand rural broadband and voice services at a lower c

Nevada to Transform Communications for Public Safety; Governor Sandoval Approves Buildout … – Broadway World Aug 17 12:25 FirstNet and AT&T worked with the Nevada Public Safety Communications …

APCO Releases Project 43 Report on Broadband in PSAPs – MissionCritical Aug 17 10:03 The Association of Public-Safety Communications Officials (APCO) International released the report for Project 43: Broadband Implications for the PSAP during its annual conference in Denver. read more

Kansas Opts in to FirstNet – MissionCritical Aug 17 10:03 Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback announced his decision to accept the First Responder Network Authority (FirstNet) and AT&T plan to deliver a wireless broadband network to the state’s public-safety community, making Kansas the 14th state or territory to opt in to FirstNet. read more

IBM’s Watson to Listen in on 911 Calls – MeriTalk Aug 17 09:45 The Association of Public-Safety Communications Officials (APCO) International, which has more than 29,000 members, tapped IBM to bring Watson …

Verizon to Compete With AT&T’s FirstNet Emergency Network – DSL Reports Aug 17 08:35 AT&T has said the wireless carrier will invest $40 billion, along with federal subsidies, to support public safety communications via 20 megahertz of …

IoT achievements make smart, sustainable cities a reality – Your Industry News Aug 17 06:40 In another example, Taiwan’s largest telecommunications provider, Chunghwa Telecom, recently announced that it will use a Narrow-band IoT …

AT&T : Verizon looks to be very competitive with AT&Ts FirstNet plans – 4-Traders Aug 16 23:50 With its win of the $7 billion FirstNet contract, AT&T was been dominating public safety communications news and mind share as states continue to opt …

Kansas Opts Into FirstNet Emergency Communications Network – Government Technology Aug 16 19:50 The emergence of FirstNet in Kansas under AT&T’s plan is expected to improve broadband coverage and service in rural areas and on tribal lands.

FCC Releases New EAS Guide – Radio magazine Aug 16 18:20 … writing to their respective SECCs and chief of the FCC’s Public Safety and Homeland Security Bureau. These will then be considered amendments …

Research and Development Accelerate toward 5G Standards-based Commercial Launches – Broadway World Aug 16 16:00 … Assisted Access/LWA/LWIP, Internet of Things (IoT) capabilities in Narrowband-IoT and Category M-1, Vehicle to Everything (V2X) Communications, …

FCC Begins Weakening The Definition Of Quality Broadband Deployment To Aid Lazy, Uncompetitive ISPs – Techdirt Corporate Intelligence Aug 16 15:05 You may be shocked to learn this, but like most U.S. regulatory agencies, the FCC’s top Commissioner spots are occassionally staffed by individuals that spend a bit too much time focused on protecting the interests of giant, incumbent, legacy companies (usually before they move on to think tanks, consultant gigs, or law firm policy work financed and steered by those same companies). In the telecom market these folks usually share some fairly consistent, telltale…

APCO Announces 2017 Leadership Award Winners – MissionCritical Aug 16 10:03 The Association of Public-Safety Communications Officials (APCO) International announced the winners of the 2017 Public Safety Communications and Technology Leadership Awards. read more

FCC considers adding wireless at 10 Mbps to broadband progress report – FierceWireless Aug 15 18:10 The FCC said it will investigate whether to add fixed and mobile wireless services to its broadband progress report, a report that previously focused …

T-Mobile Says Sinclair Merger Could Hurt Broadband Deployment – DSL Reports Aug 15 13:20 The FCC has set aside 39 months for the reauthorization and relicensing of TV stations and T-Mobile says it’s working closely with broadcasters to …

New FCC Broadband ‘Advisory Panel’ Stocked With Telecom Consultants, Allies & Cronies – Techdirt Corporate Intelligence Aug 14 15:10 On the one hand, FCC boss Ajit Pai proclaims to be a man dedicated to hard data, transparency, and closing the digital divide . But we’ve repeatedly highlighted how his public rhetoric is miles from his actual policies, which by and large focus on making life easier than ever for the nation’s entrenched, uncompetitive broadband mono/duopolies. From gutting broadband privacy and net neutrality protections , to protecting the cable industry’s monopoly over the cable box, Pai’s…

The FCC is actively working against consumers – Boy Genius Report Aug 12 11:45 The Federal Communications Commission is arguably the federal government’s least-loved and geekiest body. 30 seconds of talk about rural broadband deployments and spectrum allocation is enough to send most people running from the room. But don’t be fooled: the FCC wields a huge amount of power over one of the nation’s most critical pieces of infrastructure, and right now, it’s a mess. The hot-topic issue in the FCC is net neutrality . We’re not going to try and rehash the argument right now , bu

Opinion: FCC needs to open airwaves so rural, tribal Americans have broadband access – The Mercury News Aug 10 09:20 94 percent of our internet traffic traverses Wi-Fi and home or business …

Sonim Helps Public Safety Get FirstNet-Ready at APCO 2017 – Cellular News Aug 10 08:15

FCC Proposes Retaining 25 Mbps Broadband Definition – MediaPost Communications Aug 10 01:00 The FCC also says it may, for the first time, set benchmarks for mobile …

Don’t worry the FCC doesn’t want a mobile broadband speed cap, just standards – Digital Trends Aug 10 00:30 Now mobile service providers like AT&T and Verizon are beefing up their unlimited data plans to accommodate the growing use of mobile internet …

Snap! FCC suggest mobile internet is enough and Disney plans streaming service – Spiceworks Community Aug 10 00:25 In its annual report on broadband availability, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) suggests that mobile internet via a smartphone may be …