Emergency Broadcast System Coming To Cell Phones

gambit3 writes "The Emergency Broadcast System that interrupts TV programming in times of crisis is jumping to a new format where it might be able to reach you better — on your cell phone. The communications company Alcatel-Lucent announced Tuesday that it's creating a Broadcast Message Center that will allow government agencies to send cell phone users specific information in the event of a local, state or national emergency. It will be similar to the TV alerts in that the text messages will be geographically targeted for areas where a tornado alert or major road closure, for example, is in effect."

defeated by DOT plans to jam cell signals?

[roc97007]

It sounds like this would be rendered largely moot by DOT plans to disable cell phones in cars [yahoo.com].

Reverse 911?

[Anonymous Coward]

How is this any different from a mobile-specific reverse 911?

Re:will you have to pay for incoming and roaming

[will3477]

I think you bring up some really good points about fees that cell phone companies charge, but I think this is an easy case where you say the cell phone companies are not allowed to charge for these messages and that they by default go to all numbers although I could see allowing an opt-out list (i.e. we have cell phones on most of our vehicles to let them report location, speed etc to us, and the cell phones are in enclosure where the driver can't get to them, so the message notification could get annoying for the drivers). Overall I really think this is a good idea. Luckily we have pretty good tornado sirens where I live, but I've been at the pool on a beautiful day with the kids before only to have the tornado sirens go off and within 20 minutes there be a really bad storm. I've also really complained about the lack of traffic information; one day they closed S.R. 161 but they just had a police officer there directing you to not go on the on ramp without any explanation. They closed it as it was very icy and cars (including the salt trucks) were merely sliding off of it. My daughter's day care was on the corner of 161, so I wanted to know why the road was closed, for how far, expected open time etc. Another time this would have been useful was when a firetruck overturned in front of my apartment complex. It was just south of the entrance, so Columbus police were directing residents to approach if from the north while Blendon officers (who were there as a courtesy as its outside their jurisdiction although they share the department whose firetruck overturned) were threatening to arrest people who tried to approach from the North or who got out to tell them CPD was directing them there and did they have an ETA when they could go home (several of my neighbors were arrested and the situation didn't get better until wifes complained to CPD who used a parking lot to go around the accident and relieved Blendon).

How will it work for travelling situations?

[Jahws]

I'm curious as to how they plan to implement it, especially because some people do a lot of moving across the country. Will it be able to warn people who are vacationing (or on business trips, etc) of emergency alerts where they are, as opposed to back at home? The article mentions "geographical targeting," but gives no indication of whether this will be done with real-time information as opposed to phone registration data.

CBSMS?

[Fizzl]

Umm, what? There's already cell broadcast messages already defined in the original GSM spec!
No need to reinvent the wheel!

These were planned to be used from emergency systems to location specific advertising. Anyone have any idea why it was never used for anything?

Re:You mean...

[hellkyng]

Got to see it successfully used when my neighborhood had to be evacuated for a forest fire. They kept us up to date on about 15 - 30 minute intervals with evacuation news. It would have been amazing to have it available from the cell phone at the time. I remember running around everywhere preparing to get out of the house, it was irritating to have to drop what you were doing to find the traditional phone. Sounds like good stuff.

I like the idea

[TheDarkMaster]

I work indirectly for the Civil Defense in my state (disaster control). And I can say that the ability to be able to warn all people in a given area that they must seek shelter or where to seek help after a disaster are priceless.

pool

[mevets]

How long before the access control to this is subverted and nationwide penis enhancement texts start arriving?

I'll take 3 weeks after deployment.

Already get these

[brusk]

After the VA Tech shootings, a lot of college campuses implemented an emergency alert system that includes text messages to students and employees. My campus is one of them. The system is not geographically-aware but rather subscription-based, and so far all I've received are test messages (they announce the tests by email a few days in advance), sometimes synchronized with on-campus sirens. But it seems to work.

Re:Uh, would someone care to explain...

[Anonymous Coward]

The reason it *CAN* soon go to mobile devices is because CAP is an IP based distribution system instead of an "over the air" distribution system.

Does it support IPv6?

Earthquake potential?

[Saishuuheiki]

One of the common reasons that is given for having no earthquake alert system is that we can only predict an earth quake a matter of seconds in advance.

The idea of sending a text message to peoples cell phones, if done with some automated system, could potentially be used for this.

Though the question is how bogged down the cell networks would get, or if they'd have some sort of universal-packet where the cell-towers simply broadcast it to all phones, rather than targeting each phone individually.

Re:will you have to pay for incoming and roaming

[Obfuscant]

Pre-paid wireless accounts in the US have long been exempt from funding 911 service but there is legislation working its way through congress to change that.

Not only that, but cities and counties are getting into the act, wanting to add franchise fees to cellular services to pay for E911 and public safety dispatch call centers. The ever-money-hungry city and county pols are unhappy that cell phone callers can clog the lines of the 911 PSAP without paying to fund the call answerers. They don't see the ability of a cellphone customer to make an immediate report of a traffic accident, as opposed to driving to a payphone and calling it in, to be of any public benefit worthy of subsidy. That, and more people are dropping landline phones and the associated access fees and charges and taxes in favor of cells.

Now, as an old-timer, I know that franchise fees are supposed to be payment for the use of public rights-of-way -- in exchange for $X per sub the cable company can run their cables on city easements and whatever, for example. Cell services don't have that cost to the city so there is no reason to have a franchise fee. In fact, cell companies AREN'T franchised by the city or county so a franchise fee is just a dishonest way of calling for a tax.

Our fair city tried to push a cellphone tax through a couple of years ago. It failed miserably because it was a tax that they put up for a vote. They just added "fees" to our water to pay for sidewalk maintenance and free bus service for all, so I don't doubt that the time the cellphone tax comes up, it will be a franchise fee instead.