With access to mass media information and advanced technologies, the face of organized crime and terrorism is changing. In response, ETSI and TIA have launched the Public Safety Partnership Project (PSPP).

Dealing effectively with crime is probably as complex as it is important. Today, with access to mass media information and advanced technologies, the face of organized crime and terrorism is changing. Criminals are getting more and more sophisticated and so are their crimes. The biggest challenge for investigators of these crimes is trying to keep up with syndicates on the electronic cutting edge.

To help public safety officials combat this challenge, two of the world's leading standards development organizations, the European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI) and the Telecommunications Industry Association (TIA), have jointly launched the Public Safety Partnership Project (PSPP). The PSPP is a trans-Atlantic project organized to address the mobile broadband standardization needs of public safety users in North America and Europe. "We believe the needs of the 800 million citizens in North America and the European Union and European Economic Area (EU/EEA) will be well-served by this new initiative," commented Dan Bart, Vice President, Standards and Technology at TIA.

Initially, PSPP will prepare, approve and maintain the necessary set of technical specifications and technical reports for the first phase of Public Safety Mobile Broadband Specifications. In order to accurately reflect the users requirements, the PSPP is inviting collaboration between the partnership and the users and their organizations (i.e. public safety personnel).

"This new partnership project is being started ahead of the standards or technologies being chosen, to accommodate a well documented set of user requirements. The partnership model will then be used to create specifications and standards to address those requirements. If we are to define user needs for high data rate applications successfully, it is essential that the public safety community is closely involved in the effort," stated Karl-Heinz Rosenbrock, Director-General of ETSI.

The PSPP will develop Public Safety Mobile Broadband Specifications and capabilities that will support the public safety community's technology needs for the wireless transport and distribution of rate-intensive data, digital video and digital voice for both service-specific and general applications. The PSPP will primarily address air interface data rates beyond current standards.

"The proposed PSPP Mobile Broadband Specifications and their capabilities are intended to meet a variety of public safety applications, including the expanded use of wireless and remote robotics that could be used for the containment of chemical spills, bomb or explosive disarming, fire management and control, identification of hazardous conditions within a fire, locating fire hot spots, the locations of victims and firefighters and many other audio, data, visual and robotic operational functions needed in law enforcement, civil emergencies and/or structural, grass or forest fires. The PSPP will primarily address air interface data rates beyond current standards," states Bart.

Disaster Relief is another vital focal point of the PSPP. The PSPP is addressing the growing demand for Mobile Broadband Services within:

• Law Enforcement
• Civil Defense
• Tele-medicine
• Fire-fighting
• Mobile Robotics
• Military Peace Keeping operations
• …and more

Organized crime and terrorism will become more sophisticated and more networked in the 21st century, making it increasingly difficult to stay ahead of the technology needs of the Public Protection and Disaster Relief Sectors. Perhaps, with this new alliance between ETSI, TIA and public safety users, the gap between telecommunications technology in the Public Protection Agencies and the instigators of organized crime and terrorism can be closed.