FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

September 12, 2008

Telecommunications Industry Association (TIA) Urges FEMA to Adopt CMAS Specification Development Schedule

TIA and ATIS Draft Timeline to Facilitate a Specification for Service Providers to Speed Deployment of Emergency Alerts to Mobile Phone Subscribers

Washington, D.C. –The Telecommunications Industry Association (TIA), the leader in advocacy, standards development, business development and intelligence for the information and communications technology (ICT) industry, today urged the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to adopt a schedule developed by TIA and the Alliance for Telecommunications Industry Solutions (ATIS) that will facilitate a Commercial Mobile Alert (CMAS) specification by June 2009.  The specification will assist FEMA in interfacing, as the CMAS Alert Gateway, with mobile service providers to provide emergency alerts to affected mobile phone users.  The specification will contain a list of issues and questions for FEMA regarding development of its Federal Alert Gateway plan.

“The proposed TIA/ATIS plan for developing a CMAS specification speeding CMAS alerts to mobile phone users will result in a draft specification in weeks, allow FEMA to identify and address outstanding issues through ongoing work and dialog with TIA and ATIS, and could speed a final specification on CMAS alerting methodology by June 2009,â€? said Danielle Coffey, TIA Vice President for Government Affairs.  “We hope that FEMA will seriously consider this proposal and provide input in the coming days, as the end result will be swiftly deploying CMAS alerts that could save lives,â€? Coffey continued.

The proposed timeframe is as follows:

• September 2008: TIA/ATIS will complete a draft of the CMAS Alert Gateway to the Commercial Mobile Service Provider (CMSP) Gateway Interface Specification and share this document with FEMA. This specification will resolve any technical issues from the CMSP side and contain a list of issues and questions the industry has for FEMA regarding its activity on the Federal Alert Gateway side.
• October to December 2008:  TIA and ATIS will facilitate joint industry meetings with FEMA to address outstanding technical issues and questions.
• January 2009:  TIA and ATIS will hold joint meetings with FEMA and industry to review the draft specification, with FEMA having addressed and incorporated into the draft specification all outstanding issues.
• February 2009:  The specification will begin the TIA/ATIS approval process.
• May/June 2009:  The final specification will be published.

For more information, please contact Patrick Sullivan at psullivan@tiaonline.org. 

About TIA

The Telecommunications Industry Association (TIA) represents the global information and communications technology (ICT) industry through standards development, advocacy, tradeshows, business opportunities, market intelligence and world-wide environmental regulatory analysis. With roots dating back to 1924, TIA enhances the business environment for broadband, mobile wireless, information technology, networks, cable, satellite and unified communications. Members’ products and services empower voice, video and data communications in every industry and market, including healthcare, education, security, public safety, transportation, government, the military, the environment and entertainment.

TIA co-owns SUPERCOMM (formerly NXTcomm), the ICT industry tradeshow that showcases the business and technology solutions enabled by advanced broadband services and applications; is accredited by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI); serves as the secretariat for the Third Generation Partnership Project 2 (3GPP2); holds Board of Director positions on the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) TELECOM and USITO Boards; and hosts the USA pavilions in ITU trade fairs worldwide.

More than 1,100 subject matter experts and other industry leaders participate in TIA's 70+ standards committees and TIA has produced more than 3,000 standards documents. From mobile and personal communications systems to fiber optics and cabling infrastructure, from vehicular telematics and terrestrial mobile multimedia to healthcare ICT, TIA’s engineering committees work to formulate positions and prepare international standards and reports for use by industry and government.

In government affairs and international trade, hundreds of experts are at the table helping to foster and promote initiatives on behalf of the industry – projects such as advancing global broadband deployment across wireline, wireless and cable platforms; advocating advanced spectrum management; encouraging policies to enable information access for persons with disabilities; seeking allocation of additional spectrum to advance wireless services and public safety; facilitating market opportunities by promoting full, fair and open trade and competition in international markets; and ensuring that the U.S. communications sector continues to be a leader in advanced research.

On the environmental front, TIA’s EIATRACK subscription-based web service, on the Web at eiatrack.com, enables companies to track up-to-date information on environmental regulations around the world. TIA’s e-cyclingcentral.com service lists recycling centers for electronics in every state of the U.S. Finally, TIA standards have fostered green practices and TIA is continuing to work on ways to reduce carbon footprint and increase energy efficiency within the ICT industry.

TIA’s Board of Directors includes senior-level executives from ACS, ADC, ADTRAN, Alcatel-Lucent, ANDA Networks, ArrayComm, AttivaCorp, Avaya, Bechtel Communications, Inc., Cam Communications, Cisco Systems, Corning Incorporated, Ericsson, Inc., Graybar, Henkels & McCoy, ILS Technology, Intel Corporation, LGE, Microsoft, Motorola, Nokia Siemens Networks, Nortel, OneChip Photonics Inc., Panasonic Computer Solutions Co., Qualcomm, Research In Motion, Sumitomo Electric Lightwave Corporation, Tellabs, Tyco Electronics, Ulticom, Inc., Verari Systems, Westell Technologies, Inc. and Zebra Technologies Corporation. Advisors to the Board include FAL Associates, Orca Systems and Telcordia Technologies.

TIA membership enhances the ability of companies to prepare for the future of communications.  TIA brings people and businesses together by helping the industry overcome technical and political barriers to communications. Visit tiaonline.org for details.

 

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