We've been hearing about new capabilities for emergency 911 services for years, but it looks like the industry is ready to move as one to make text-to-911 a reality across the US. The Big 4 wireless carriers, as well as The 911 Association and the Association for Public-Safety Communications Officials International has submitted an agreement to the FCC that outlines plans to work together on standards, procedures and technology deployments that will provide a "seamless introduction" of the tech across the US.
They're not guaranteeing it will be available everywhere in two years, but the specific signposts noted are support for bounce-back notifications by June 30th, 2013 that tell texters when the service isn't available in their area and a "commitment" to nationwide rollouts by May 15th 2014. So far, efforts to make your thumbs more useful in an emergency have been disjointed, but a concerted effort by industry giants should let you avoid busy signals and dropped calls at the worst possible time sooner rather than later. Check out a press release from the group, as well as a word from the FCC, which will consider the proposal on December 12th, after the break or the agreement itself in PDF form at the source link.
Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile, Verizon, Sprint, AT&T, T-Mobile
Source: Voluntary Text Commitment (PDF), FCC
