TCCA Urges Sector to Align on Mission-Critical User Definition as Broadband Transition Accelerates

Who are the mission-critical communications users? New white paper from TCCA highlights the need for a common definition.

There are many types of operations which rely on critical communications. These include public safety and security, emergency services, critical infrastructure, public utilities, transportation, critical industries and related activities, where failures in critical communications would lead to catastrophic degradation of services. Yet there is no clear definition of a ‘mission-critical user’.

To date it has been the country itself that defines the users of their mission critical network. This is reflected in the findings from a survey[1] carried out by TCCA’s Legal and Regulatory Working Group (LRWG). The findings form the basis for the new white paper ‘Definition of Users in Mission Critical Networks’. The paper highlights that there is no clear common approach or definition of user groups that are given access to the mission-critical network. Apart from the first responders – police, fire and rescue and ambulance services – the user groups vary from country to country, and sometimes even from region to region and network to network. 

Today, a majority of  countries that operate mission-critical networks rely on state-owned dedicated narrowband systems such as TETRA networks, open only to critical users. However, as critical communications transition to broadband services, they will be utilising commercial networks shared with commercial users. This puts a reliance on commercial mobile network operators to provide mission-critical user requirements. 

Mission-critical users have special requirements that will need to be enabled in the commercial networks, such as priority and pre-emption and a high level of service quality, hence the need for a common definition of a mission-critical user.

There are also plans to interconnect mission-critical broadband networks across national borders in order to enable and support seamless cooperation and collaboration between countries, such as the planned European Critical Communications System (EUCCS)[2]. Additionally, Great Britain and France will have to enable interworking between the Emergency Services Network (ESN) and Réseau Radio du Futur (RRF), to aid cooperation in and around the Channel Tunnel. 

In the case of bilateral relations, a common understanding in operational aspects is critically important, for example, roaming across networks. This raises the question of which users are to be accepted and can gain access to the visited network. If the definition of ‘user’ differs significantly between networks/agencies, enabling roaming would be operationally complicated.

 “The critical communication sector is comparatively much smaller than the consumer sector, so critical communication agencies have come to realise that they have to work closely together,” said Nina Myren, LRWG chair and TCCA Board member sponsored by Nkom Norway. “Close collaboration requires a common understanding and common approaches, and for common approaches to be effective, the terminology used must have the same or similar meaning throughout the sector and across the agencies.”

Over the years, the wider telecommunication sector has developed a set of terms with globally accepted definitions, and this has contributed to the overall development of the sector. Norms in terminology help improve collaboration, leading to innovation and economies of scale. The critical communication sector should also follow this path to foster strong collaboration between all stakeholders.

The term ‘user’ is thus a key term that requires a common definition, not least as a prerequisite for effective cross-border communication.

Read the white paper ‘Definition of Users in Mission Critical Networks’ here.