AT&T awarded contract to build FirstNet

The US government has tapped the second-largest cellphone carrier in the US to build a first-of-its-kind wireless network to facilitate communication between emergency first responders - firefighters, police and medical workers - during a major emergency.

The 25-year contract announced yesterday directs AT&T to build and maintain the network, known as FirstNet, that is supposed to be unprecedented in its level of sophistication and scale.

When federal, state or local authorities arrive at the scene of an emergency today, their communications devices had to compete with those of consumers who were also trying to access the cellular network, FirstNet executives said.

This could cause congestion and delays that endangered lives.

Therfore, the FirstNet network will be designed to give priority to first responders, said FirstNet president TJ Kennedy.

With the help of SIM cards inserted in their phones, police, fire and medical officers would be better able to communicate with one another. Much like current technology, the new network will allow them to send and receive video, data and voice calls before they reached a crisis area.

However, that information would arrive uninterrupted and in real time.

''They will always be prioritized. They're always at the front of the line,'' Kennedy said, The Washington Post reported. "This happens inside the network at the millisecond level."

The idea was born out of the 9/11 Commission, and was the only recommendation of the bipartisan commission that was yet to be implemented. Congress had earmarked funds for the, FirstNet project, but it had suffered delays and false starts.

According to executives at AT&T, the second-largest wireless provider by subscribers, they will spend about $40 billion over the 25-year contract to build and maintain the network, which AT&T said would create 10,000 jobs.

According to commentators, the decision was a major step forward for FirstNet, but there were still questions about whether it would get built as envisioned. Some states were still considering whether to join the federal project or build their own public safety networks.