Congress gives radio and wireless industries a nudge toward a FM-cell phone compromise. A microchip and a U.S. House committee chairman are proving to be the needed catalysts to jumpstart efforts to get FM receivers installed and activated in mobile phones. A Capitol Hill roundtable put the radio and wireless industries at the same table, and while there’s no appetite in Congress to force a mandate, their attention may be enough to nudge the two industries closer together. “This is the start of serious dialogue,” predicts Emmis CEO Jeff Smulyan, who’s been among those leading the industry’s effort with cell phone companies. The Tuesday summit was called by Homeland Security Committee chairman Rep. Gus Bilirakis. He says he received “valuable insight” from broadcasters and the phone companies but signals he still thinks it’s better for the two industries to work out a solution. “The best ideas and innovation come from the private sector, not the federal government,” Bilirakis says. Smulyan says the industry doesn’t want a government mandate, but hopes instead to find a business solution that will work for radio stations and mobile companies. The development of a new HD chipset may be the sweetener cell phone providers have been waiting for. “With the new HD chip, we have a business application that I think will get them interested,” Smulyan says. “Our job is to continue pushing this and now that the chip is ready, we can push and also provide a business solution.” Besides beaming digital radio signals, the chipset opens up new content options for listeners and marketing opportunities for advertisers. For example, an action button that places a call to a local merchant, downloads a coupon to the device, or places an appointment into its calendar. Full screen ads and mapping integration are also included. And music sales from song-tagging could also be routed to a carrier’s online music store. “There are business opportunities here and now it’s a question of how we put them together,” Smulyan says.

Excerpt from Inside Radio- April 26, 2012

Inside Radio- FM chips.pdf (2.07 mb)

taken from The News Star - April 14, 2012- http://www.thenewsstar.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2012204150313

Storms raise alarms
 
Written by
Greg Hilburn

When the National Weather Service issued a tornado warning for Sterlington and Ouachita Parish before dawn on April 5, few people were aware of the danger as they slept.

"We know stuff is happening, and there are storms out there with rotation, but we just haven't had any ground reports yet because it's still dark and people are still asleep," Aaron Stevens of the National Weather Service's Shreveport office told The News-Star early that morning during the storm. "That's when there's the most danger because people are unaware and unprotected."

Luckily, no tornado touched down in Sterlington that morning, but the increased threat of tornadic activity and severe storms during the past three years caused by La Nina created heightened anxiety.

The best way to protect yourself if you're in the path of the storm is to seek the sturdiest shelter, like a bathtub in an interior room, but you have to know the tornado is coming.

Last summer, Ouachita Parish officials began exploring the possibility of installing a parishwide siren system that would belt out an unmistakable warning, but Homeland Security Director Tracy Hilburn said those plans have been shelved because they are cost prohibitive.

"It would cost millions of dollars, and the funding we had hoped to secure from a federal hazard mitigation grant is no longer available for pre-mitigation," Hilburn said.

But Don Wheeler, an assistant professor of science at Louisiana Delta Community College and a veteran storm chaser, said the siren system would be considered a bargain if a tornado touches down.

"They're expensive, but how do you put a value on human life," Wheeler said. "There's definitely a great need because people turn off their TVs and radios at night. We need them badly. There's no mistaking the sound of that siren. You'll never forget it if you've ever heard one.

"There is one (siren) unit at (the University of Louisiana at Monroe), but it only covers the campus. I'm looking into the possibility of getting one for our (Delta) campus. Sooner or later we're going to get a direct hit, and then we'll be wondering why we didn't pursue a siren system. The odds are against us."

But Hilburn said the sirens aren't mean to be heard indoors, "so if it happens at night and people are asleep, it wouldn't help."

He said Ouachita Parish, through the state of Louisiana, will have another warning system in place by the end of the summer.

The Alert FM system, which will be delivered through $35 to $40 radios on an FM frequency, "will definitely wake you up".

"It gives you the ability to get custom messages to specific ZIP codes and is tied to the National Weather Service and Homeland Security," Hilburn said. "It does more than a weather radio because it can direct messages to specific areas in the path of the storm."

Hilburn said he'll be working with the school systems to provide larger FM Alert radios for them and hopes nonprofit groups will raise money to provide the FM Alert radios to people who can't afford them.

"It's the best option we have for now," said Hilburn, who begins training on the system in May and hopes the radios are available to the public by June.

For those without access to computers, radios or TVs, which can be useless if the electricity fails during a storm, people can call the United Way of Northeastern Louisiana's 211 on their cell or land lines for updated warnings.

"We'll absolutely have the most updated information on a 24-hour availability," said Janet Durden of the United Way. "It's completely in sync with the National Weather Service and Homeland Security."

Wheeler said in the absence of dedicated warning systems, people should be proactive when they know there is a threat of severe weather.

"If you know it's a possibility, be alert and get as much information as possible from any source you can access," he said. "That awareness could save your life."
But Hilburn said the sirens aren't mean to be heard indoors, "so if it happens at night and people are asleep, it wouldn't help."

Ouachita Parish news story.pdf (778.87 kb)

PRESS ALERT

Demonstrations of the GSS CAP-EAS Solutions for Radio at NAB Show, Las Vegas Convention Center in the Radio-Ready Cell Phone Booth N3238 and FEMA Booth C746   

The Radio-Ready Cell Phone Showcase, N3238, and FEMA, C746Featuring radio’s emergency alerting capabilities, including a demonstration of ALERT FM texting, part of the GSS end-to-end CAP origination, transport, and broadcast dissemination system.  To schedule a personal demonstration of ALERT FM and learn more about the GSS CAP-EAS System, please contact Matthew Straeb, 954-850-6606,mstraeb@gssnet.us.  

Plus… Experts Take a Comprehensive Look at CAP-EAS Regulatory Issues, Wednesday, April 18, Room S224

 ·         9:00AM-10:30AMEAS: The Nationwide Test Is Over… So What’s Next  Moderator:
Larry Walke, Associate General Counsel, NAB
Panelists:
Thomas Beers, Chief, Policy Division, PSHSB, FCC
Antwane Johnson, Division Director, IPAWS, FEMA National Continuity Programs
Mark Lucero, Chief, IPAWS Engineering, FEMA National Continuity Programs
Sharon Tinsley, President, Alabama Broadcasters Association 

• 10:00AM-10:30AM

• 10:30AM-11:15AM

NAB 2012 v 2 (2)-final.pdf (125.04 kb)

Las Vegas, NV, NAB Show -- April 11, 2012 – Working closely with state broadcaster associations, Global Security Systems (GSS) has finalized arrangements with Louisiana, Mississippi, and Oklahoma that officially designate GSSNet Alert Studio, along with the GSSNet satellite network, as statewide CAP-EAS aggregation tools for creating, retrieving, and distributing Emergency Alert System (EAS) messages to Local Primary 1 and 2 (LP1/LP2) FM radio stations.  In addition, Louisiana and Mississippi will utilize digital broadcast delivery of text messages to FM receivers with ALERT FM. 

Louise “Lou” Munson, President and Chief Executive Officer of LAB observed, “With statewide implementation of the CAP-EAS solution from GSS, Louisiana radio broadcasters meet the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) requirements, their public service responsibilities, plus they help save lives in their community.” 

“When disaster strikes, the integrated and highly reliable CAP-EAS solution from GSS provides fast and secure shared access that allows federal, state, and local agencies to communicate with Mississippi radio broadcasters in an effective and coordinated manner,” stated Jackie Lett, President, Mississippi Association of Broadcasters. 

GSSNet Alert Studio is compliant with the Common Alert Protocol (CAP) and can create and retrieve alerts in multiple formats -- WAV/MP3 files, live text-to-speech (including in Spanish), and live recorded messages . Recently, GSSNet Alert Studio passed Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) testing.   

Any CAP alert messages can be disseminated via GSSNet FM-based satellite system, on a national, regional, or hyper-local basis, to receivers of AM, FM, including HD radio signals.  GSSNet provides an added layer of reliability with IP distribution via the Internet.  GSSNet Alert Studio and the GSSNet FM-based network are officially selected for CAP-EAS origination, retrieval, and dissemination to broadcasters in Alabama, Mississippi, and Oklahoma.   

“We are honored that Louisiana and Mississippi have chosen the GSSNet Alert Studio including GSSNet Satellite for statewide CAP-EAS compliant alert message origination, retrieval, and dissemination,” noted Robert Adams, President and Chief Executive Officer, GSS.  “We are grateful to all of our state association partners,” he added.  “Working with state broadcast associations facilitates statewide implementation and deployment of the GSS end-to-end CAP origination, transport, and broadcast dissemination system, which helps  broadcasters save lives at even the most hyper-local level.”  

The GSSNet Alert Studio and GSSNet Satellite are both state of the art digital technology and provide end-to-end GSS CAP-EAS solution for broadcasters.  When combined with ALERT-FM digital broadcast delivery of text messages to radio receivers, GSSNet Alert Studio including GSSNet provides a dedicated Digital network that provides complete end-to-end CAP source, transport, and broadcast dissemination system to cable, television, and radio, including wireless devices such as mobile phones. 

“GSSNet and GSSNet Alert Studio provide our broadcast stations with the tools needed to broadcast CAP-based EAS messages which meets the new FCC standard. We worked with the Oklahoma Department of Emergency Management to deploy these systems in our state,” said Vance Harrison, President, Oklahoma Broadcasters Association. “This new EAS system benefits our stations and the public by allowing our broadcasters to receive and distribute federal, state, and local messages including Presidential Alerts, Imminent Danger Alerts, Amber Alerts, weather warnings, and other emergency information.” 

Demonstrations of the GSS CAP-EAS Solution will be conducted at the NAB Show in Las Vegas, Monday, April 16 through Thursday, April 19, at the Las Vegas Convention Center in the FEMA Booth, C746 and the NAB Radio-Ready Cell Phone Booth, N3238. 

 About Global Security Systems:Global Security Systems (GSS) is a systems integrator, service provider and manufacturer of the ALERT FM, GSSNet Alert Studio and GSSNet satellite delivery system.  Global Security Systems has participated in the development of IPAWS based systems, is a member of the Commercial Mobile Alert Service systems committee, and is actively involved with several EAS and CAP committees.  The Global Security Systems nationwide GSSNet satellite delivery system for emergency alerts currently is in operation at over 300 locations in 16 states and growing daily, and includes the ability to generate and deliver CAP messages.

Media Contact:Renee Cassis646-808-6505Cassis2@msn.com

Louisiana PR v 14A-final.pdf (287.55 kb)