AT&T (NYSE: T) has introduced a new service called ESInet that it says will allow public safety agencies the opportunity to upgrade their legacy 911 networks to IP.
Set on accelerating the adoption of next-gen 911 call routing, ESInet allows agencies to more easily manage 911 calls and automatically handle call overflow between Public Safety Answering Points (PSAPs) and disaster recovery locations.
One of the key features is that unlike the traditional voice-only 911 networks, ESInet can handle texts with future support pictures and video.
Another benefit of ESInet is speed. Law enforcement agencies, fire departments and emergency medical response services (EMS) will be able to receive detailed information more quickly using the modernized IP network.
A witness at the scene of a car accident can send EMS a picture or video of the incident, enabling EMS workers to be better prepared and arrive with the right resources.
To support the ESInet service, AT&T is deploying West Corp's technologies in its own central offices and data centers over the next 18 months.
AT&T said it plans "to make it available to customers in the second half of 2016" and the "rollout will include enough call processing capacity to serve more than twice the current nationwide 9-1-1 call volumes."
Set to work with most PSAP call handling equipment, AT&T ESInet will be its NextGen 911 offer for the telco's 21-state footprint and in other areas.
ESInet is just one of a number of moves AT&T has been making in the next-gen 911 market. Previously, the service provider won an IP-based 911 contract with the state of Kansas as well as a contract with the U.S. Navy.
AT&T is hardly alone in driving next-gen 911. Fellow telcos FairPoint and Frontier won similar contracts with in Maine, Vermont and New York State.
For more:
- see the release
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