TAC to meet on emergency alert technology

The FCC Technological Advisory Council will meet July 20 to consider advanced emergency alert technologies and survivable network services and technologies.

The council, formed to provide the commission with technical insights concerning innovations in communications and related industries, will hear from Bill Smith, chief technology officer of BellSouth, on wireline issues, David Borth of Motorola on Wi-Max related issues, and Dewayne Hendricks of the Dandin Group.

Addressing individuals with warning messages in an emergency via their cell phones and handheld devices was an important component of the just completed second phase of public broadcasting’s digital emergency alert system test. (See: FEMA commits to Digital EAS.)

The meeting at commission headquarters in Washington, D.C., will begin at 10 a.m. and is open to the public. No comments from the public will be allowed unless requested by the Chair. Written comments will be accepted prior to the meeting. The meeting will be streamed via the Web and requires the RealAudio player.

For more information, visit www.fcc.gov.