Alcatel-Lucent says that it has made industry’s first data call using a LTE wireless broadband network operating at Band 14, the spectrum earmarked for public safety agencies in the United States.

Alcatel-Lucent says that it has made industry’s first data call using a LTE wireless broadband network operating at Band 14, the spectrum earmarked for public safety agencies in the United States.  

The call demonstrates the readiness of the network to support current public safety applications used by police, fire and emergency medical services as well as new applications enabled by wireless broadband.

”This achievement represents an important step toward revolutionizing public safety networks as it establishes the readiness of LTE as a technology to enable broadband data applications,”  said Morgan Wright, Vice President, Global Public Safety Segment at Alcatel-Lucent.  “This call also demonstrates Alcatel-Lucent’s expertise in designing and deploying LTE solutions to address the unique needs of the public safety sector and marks an important milestone in support of the Public Safety solution that Alcatel-Lucent is delivering to this critical market.”

In July 2007, the United States Federal Communications Commission (FCC) revised the 700 MHz band plan and service rules to promote the creation of a nationwide interoperable broadband network for public safety and to facilitate the availability of new and innovative wireless broadband services for consumers.The Commission designated 10 MHz of spectrum (paired 5 MHz carriers) in the upper 700 MHz band for Public Safety Broadband communications. This spectrum, together with the adjacent D block constitutes the 3GPP Band 14.