WIA Congratulates AT&T on FirstNet Award

The Wireless Infrastructure Association (WIA) issued the following statement from Jonathan Adelstein, President and CEO of WIA, regarding the U.S. Department of Commerce’s announcement that AT&T has won the FirstNet contract with the federal government.

“After many years of work on this, including the disappointment of the failure to move the D-block in the 2008 spectrum auction, I am thrilled to see us reach a conclusion to the long and winding road to get to FirstNet. We congratulate AT&T on securing the contract to develop and deploy this vital public safety broadband network. FirstNet will play a crucial role in communities of all sizes by enabling public safety professionals to better serve citizens, and to protect themselves in the process. This reliable, high-speed network will maximize the use of existing infrastructure to power novel applications that increase situational awareness and help save lives. We applaud the many stakeholders involved for their hard work in reaching this milestone. The wireless infrastructure industry is prepared to roll up our sleeves to get this implemented as quickly and efficiently as possible.”