Wireless Alerting NPRM To Look at Longer Messages Targeted to Smaller Geographic Areas
An NPRM slated for a vote at Thursday’s FCC meeting aimed at expanding wireless emergency alerts (WEA) on wireless devices isn't proving controversial, and is expected to be approved at what looks likely to be a noncantankerous meeting, industry and FCC officials said. The WEA NPRM is designed to improve the effectiveness of alerts, they said. Currently, wireless alerts are limited to 90 characters and can't contain hyperlinks. The NPRM is said to propose raising the limits on the size of messages and allowing inclusion of hyperlinks and other information making messages more user friendly.
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The NPRM also would examine ways to further tighten the size of the areas in which alerts are sent, beyond just county-level alerts, to limit the number of emergency alerts received by wireless subscribers, officials said. The NPRM also seeks comment on whether the commission should require testing of WEA systems and the filing of reports.
“I’m circulating a proposal to make Wireless Emergency Alerts a more effective tool to communicate important information to the public,” FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler said (see 1510290071) in an Oct. 29 blog post. “WEA has already saved lives. It only makes sense to try to expand its use and increase its effectiveness.”
The FCC proposal appears to track recommendations in an October 2014 report by a working group of the agency’s Communications Security, Reliability and Interoperability Council. “The most desired improvements include increased message length, supplementing the WEA with graphical information (e.g., display of the recipient’s locations along with a map of the threat area, photo of a suspect, missing child, etc.), and improving the geographical targeting granularity,” the report said.
The CSRIC report recommended the size limit of emergency messages be increased to about 280 displayable characters, a message length “consistent with capabilities of 4G LTE.” Reaching consensus on supplementing the WEA with graphical information was more challenging, the report said. “Members of the alert origination community suggest that the built-in capabilities of mobile devices (e.g., location finding, maps, Internet connectivity, etc.) be leveraged in order to achieve the desired improvements,” the report said. “The wireless industry expresses great concern about the feasibility of providing graphical information since standards-based WEA uses cell broadcast which only supports text messages, and other solutions may have potential negative impacts to [carrier] infrastructure.”
As a sign of the lack of controversy, the FCC has posted only four filings in the main WEA docket, 15-91, since the beginning of August. All four were made by AC&C, a vendor of WEA technology.
The other wireless agenda item on hearing-aid compatibility rules is also expected to be noncontroversial. Groups representing the deaf and hard of hearing submitted an agreement to the FCC last week on a time frame for getting to 100 percent compliance with HAC rules for all handsets offered by carriers (see 1511130027). Wheeler subsequently circulated a revised item reflecting the agreement, agency officials said Thursday.