TeamTalk commits to P25 technology in 'future-proofing' move

By NZPA

Thursday 1st February 2007

TeamTalk has invested in a new technology which will massively improve government responses in disasters and national emergencies.

The IP-based technology, called P25, allows agencies to talk directly to each other when required, while providing much greater security and privacy.

P25 has benefits for a range of central and local government agencies - particularly emergency services, which need to be able to communicate with each other in cases of major disasters or national emergencies.

However these organisations also need to be able to communicate privately the rest of the time - and P25 ensures their calls and data are encrypted and can't be overheard by anyone outside the organisation.

The need for P25 was sharply felt in the US during the 9/11 attack, when the thousands of emergency vehicles and staff attending weren't able to communicate directly. This was identified as a major problem and caused the US Government to focus on P25 as a key element of its Homeland Security initiatives Developed by American police forces, P25 was designed to overcome three problems;

Interoperability - agencies have difficulty talking to each other
Privacy - calls and information need to be extremely secure
Coverage - they require reliable communications over large rural area

"This is one of our future-proofing strategies," TeamTalk managing director David Ware said. "Clearly New Zealand doesn't currently have challenges on the same scale as the US, nonetheless we expect over time people will upgrade to this system as costs reduce and their existing handsets need replacing."

"Over time we can see this being valuable to agencies such as Ambulance, Fire Service, Police, the Ministry of Fisheries, Justice and other government agencies, as well as private organisations like high-end security companies, energy retailers and port companies,."

P25 technology is TIA Standard-based and supports handsets from a variety of manufacturers including Motorola and Tait Electronics.

TeamTalk says the P25 network is operating in Wellington and is in the final stages of testing. The company plans to introduce the new technology throughout the country.

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