Commnet Wireless entered a $167.5 million network build and maintenance agreement with AT&T Mobility for Commnet to build a radio access network (RAN) for AT&T’s commercial and First Responder Network Authority (FirstNet) network in or near Commnet’s operating area in the Southwest.

The U.S. departments of Commerce and Transportation announced more than $109 million in grants to 34 states and two tribal nations as part of the 9-1-1 Grant Program, which aims to help 9-1-1 call centers upgrade to next-generation 9-1-1 (NG 9-1-1) capabilities.

The European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI), in partnership with Erillisverkot, the Finnish TETRA operator, and the support of TCCA and the European Commission, will organize the fourth MCX Plugtests event 23 – 27 September at the Savonia University of Applied Sciences, Kuopio, Finland.

Several companies released new products at the 2019 Association of Public-Safety Communications Officials (APCO) International annual conference and exhibition in Baltimore.

Augmented (AR) and virtual reality (VR) are finding holds in the commercial market as consumers adopt the technology for gaming, learning and other users. While not as established as it is in the commercial market, AR is also beginning to creep into the public-safety market.

The U.S. government is accepting comment on draft rule that would ban federal agencies from buying telecommunications and video surveillance equipment from five Chinese companies, including Hytera Communications and Huawei.

The FCC issued a $39,278 fine against Ocean Hinson of Surry County, North Carolina, for intentional misuse of a local public-safety radio communications network in violation of the Communications Act of 1934. Hinson impersonated first responders in unauthorized radio communications on Surry County’s licensed public-safety frequency.

The European Emergency Number Association (EENA) released a report card on the deployment of advanced mobile location (AML) technology, used to locate emergency callers.

A Public Safety Technology Alliance (PSTA) subcommittee identified the Project 25 (P25) Digital Fixed Station Interface (DFSI) as the best integration protocol standard for LMR and Long Term Evolution (LTE) interoperability. The subcommittee said an enhanced radio over IP (RoIP) protocol could also be developed to address DFSI’s shortcomings.

In an ex parte filing with the FCC, the Association of Public-Safety Communications Officials (APCO) International voiced concerns with proposed rules around wireless 9-1-1 location accuracy, the 6 GHz band and the wireless resiliency cooperative framework.