LTE – according to each technology’s
strengths – is perceived as a more
reliable solution, but a future LTEonly
solution is also gaining consensus
(the timeframe is under discussion).”
“A mobile virtual network operator
approach seems to be the preferred
model, to better address concerns
around security and network control.
This would be in conjunction with
the possible enhancing of public
networks in under-served areas,
through the use of private fixed and
deployable access. These – plus,
obviously, the availability of relevant
features, as fully standardised by 3GPP
– are the major driving factors being
considered in the context of the future
broadband transition.”
Earlier on in this article, the
UK ESN project was mentioned,
specifically in relation to its – entirely
unrealistic – initial timescale (as driven
by what, at the time, was considered
to be the urgent need to fully deploy
before the contract with Airwave
ran out). An unfortunate knock-on
effect of this was to send those at the
coal-face of UK public safety into
something of a panic, confronted
with the apparent possibility that any
delay in the programme might leave
them without access to mission-critical
push-to-talk.
This fear has since been assuaged,
primarily through the guarantee that
the Home Office’s current TETRA
network will be available for as long as
necessary (current ETSO – estimated
time of switch off – 2022). There
is also the sense that the ESMCP
programme has now fundamentally
got a handle on the technology itself,
via a shift from proprietary to open
standards. According to Veltroni, this
is something which users in Italy are
angling for right from the get-go.
“User organisations are generally
pushing for a full standard solution,
providing multimedia professional
services according to the 3GPP
MCX suite ie, MCPTT, MCVideo
and MCData,” he says. “TETRA
integration with pre-standard solutions
will be taken into account while
waiting for the full completion of
3GPP standardisation – as well as the
subsequent time for implementation
and deployment – in Release 16.
“With that in mind, it is
questionable whether public telcos will
make investments for upgrading their
network for the effective support of
mission-critical services, for instance
by fine-tuning QoS quality of
service and adding eMBMS evolved
multimedia broadcast multicast
services network components at the
functional level. Other considerations
include items required to improve
service availability, especially in
areas not justified by return on
investment analysis.”
Needless to say, potential willingness
on the part of commercial MNOs to
upgrade/harden their networks for
mission-critical-grade communications
is only one currently undecided
aspect of future roll-out plans.
Another massive question, and this
will come as no surprise to readers of
Critical Communications Today, is the
availability of spectrum.
“Spectrum is a key element,” says
Veltroni, “especially if the possible
roll-out will involve a mixture of
private and public networks, with
some private-access portion integrating
and enhancing public commercial
networks in under-served and rural
areas. The 700MHz band is the
portion of spectrum preferred by
the mission–critical community for
coverage and interoperability issues;
however, it is also a target for public
operators that will want to use it for
5G network deployment.
“In the latest national frequency
plan issued by the Italian Authority,
a portion of 2 x 8MHz in 700MHz,
commonly named band 68, has
been left available for PPDR usage.
Unfortunately, too few devices are
currently available operating in
band 68 – which is not attractive for
chipset vendors – so, for the moment,
this band cannot be used in any
practical fashion.
“At the same time, other substantial
portions of the 700MHz band have
been auctioned for 5G networks,
with a public tender that resulted in
an income of more than €2bn for the
Italian government. Total 5G earnings,
including also 3.7GHz and 26GHz,
amounted to more than €6.5bn.”
He continues: “Other challenges
are related to the budget available for
building a dedicated network if that is
the chosen course, or for integrating
the aforementioned commercial
networks, depending on which model
will be chosen.
“Public telco operators’ coverage
is not homogeneous, and rural or
unpopulated areas are not properly
served. Police forces need, however,
to control the whole territory, and
if broadband becomes part of the
solution toolbox, it must be available
everywhere an emergency appears.
Each police force has its own coverage
needs, whether that’s in major cities,
rural areas, in the mountains or along
the coast.”
As with many other countries,
this is an important time for Italian
public safety comms. Keep checking
Critical Communications Today for the
latest updates.
The PIT project’s
updates include
full control room
functionalities,
such as integration
with video
surveillance
User organisations are
generally pushing for a
full standard solution, providing
multimedia professional
services according to
the 3GPP MCX suite
April 2019 @CritCommsToday 13