The First Responders Network Authority board unanimously approved the request for proposal giving broad outlines and direction for a nationwide, public-private LTE network for first responders. The FirstNet RFP is set to be released in early January.
The RFP approval marks the next stage of FirstNet's work and is...
LTE continues to evolve and present new challenges and opportunities, even as the industry begins to chase "5G" dreams. At last week's LTE North America event, both the current state of LTE features as well as new evolutions within mobile networks and the trends...
American Tower takes controlling stake in Indian tower company
American Tower made a power move in India this week, agreeing to buy 51% controlling stake in Indian tower company Viom Networks for 76 billion rupees ($1.17 billion). This is not the company's first entry into...
A part of the Middle Class Tax Relief and Job Creation Act of 2012, the federal government created the First Responders Network Authority to address large-scale public safety network concerns.
When networks go down or get overloaded it can be a huge public safety...
The FirstNet early builder project in New Jersey, known as JerseyNet, provided coverage at a pair of recent weekend beach concerts in Atlantic City, enabling the police department to sidestep the usual crashing of their mobile security cameras and actually use the system as...
Fatal fire call to 911 delayed, blamed on cell towers
This week a fatal fire broke out in Forestdale, Ala. While deadly fires aren't a unique phenomenon, unfortunately, blaming the fatality on the cell tower is somewhat less common. According to Forestdale Fire Chief Don...
The board of the First Responders Network Authority has approved its budget, putting $126 million in play for acquisition, consultation and spectrum relocation in the next fiscal year as the FirstNet national network moves closer to reality.
Progress is slowly but surely being made toward a national...
FirstNet envisions a nationwide public safety network built on same LTE standards used by commercial carriers
As Minnesota officials consider how to proceed with a statewide upgrade to the public safety broadband infrastructure, the state Department of Public Safety has requested information from potential partners...
The 40-member Public Safety Advisory Committee received its first formal update on the status of FirstNet pilot projects around the country in the ongoing effort to lay the groundwork for a national LTE network for public safety broadband.
The PSAC was formed to provide the...
The First Responders Network Authority board has issued a draft request for proposal outlining significant details of potential plans for the national LTE network for public safety that it has been tasked with building and operating.
The draft RFP, posted yesterday, is the latest move...
The National Telecommunications and Information Administration is suspending the funding for the Los Angeles Regional Interoperable Communications System's LTE project that utilizes 700 Mhz Band 14 spectrum, one of five pilot projects across the country that are aimed at providing a foundation for the...
LAS VEGAS – The early pioneers in public safety LTE broadband shared some of their experiences in a panel discussion at IWCE 2015, and some of their pain points – probably unsurprisingly – sounded like those of commercial mobile operators, including opposition to tower siting impacting...
LAS VEGAS – The First Responders Network Authority, or FirstNet, continues to gather input on the planning and implementation of a nationwide LTE network for public safety and is aiming to issue a final request for proposals as soon as this year.
Representatives from FirstNet...
Fourth-quarter financial results for most tower companies have come and gone, and now with NATE Unite wrapped up as well, there's been a lull on the national/international tower stage. However, that doesn't mean nothing's going on. Mobile World Congress has been happening this week in...
Smartphones are now practically everywhere, having penetrated the consumer and enterprise markets early on and are now taking aim at the ruggedized environments.
A handful of such devices have been rolled out by devicemakers big and small, with some providing mere lip service (Samsung), while...
New York City license tops $2.5B, Los Angeles surpasses $2B
Another day, another billion dollars in the Federal Communications Commission’s Auction 97, which this morning surpassed $39.5 billion in total potential winning bids through round 42. The latest round included 113 new bids totaling $181.4...
A poll of state CIOs by their national association found that the development of models and organization around the First Responders Network Authority was relatively mature and education efforts are ongoing.
A new report by the National Association of State CIOs (NASCIO), based on the polling...
Test and measurement companies Anite and Elektrobit (EB) have collaborated to develop a drive test system for Band 14 LTE public safety networks.Â
The First Responders Network Authority, or FirstNet, is developing a Band 14 network domestically that is still in the planning stages on...
The Wireless History Foundation announced four individuals set to be inducted into the Wireless Hall of Fame at an event scheduled for Sept. 9. The inductees were selected by a committee composed of an anonymous panel of Hall of Fame members.
This year’s inductees include...
Former Alcatel-Lucent subsidiary LGS Innovations is in its early days of new ownership, and CEO Kevin Kelly is ready to expand the company's reach.
LGS, headquartered in northern Virginia, was formed during the Alcatel and Lucent merger to serve the telcom needs of the U.S. federal...
The First Responders Network Authority is on the path of a strategic roadmap to build a national wireless network for first responders.
FirstNet's board met earlier this month and has voted to proceed on its preliminary strategic roadmap for that network, which is aimed at...
Microwave networking vendor Aviat Networks said it has completed LTE evaluation at the Public Safety Communications Research program's public safety test-bed network in Boulder, Colo., where it is also providing microwave backhaul.
The PSCR is housed at the U.S. Department of Commerce's lab and provides...
The first day of the Federal Communications Commission’s Auction 96 included three rounds of bidding and a total purse of more than $221 million pledged for the licenses up for grabs. Of the 176 licenses up for auction, 78 had received a potential winning...
