NICE Systems Participates in Successful NENA Next Gen 9-1-1 Testing Event

NICE solutions pass critical NENA NG9-1-1 Industry Collaboration Event (ICE 2) interoperability testing phase; up next - ICE 8

By Linda Haelsen, NICE Systems

NICE Systems has participated in the NENA NG9-1-1 Industry Collaboration Event (ICE 2) which successfully concluded on May 28, 2010. The event focused on interoperability testing of NG9-1-1 transitional elements needed to support the evolution from legacy 9-1-1 to Next Generation 9-1-1 (NG9-1-1). The ICE testing took place at the AT&T Training Center in Irving, TX, and is the first in a series of collaborative events in which NICE will take part, to advance Next Generation 9-1-1, and to ensure the NG9-1-1 readiness and interoperability of NICE solutions for NG9-1-1 environments.

At the heart of NG9-1-1 is the Emergency Services IP Network (ESInet), capable of delivering emergency communications and related data to Next Generation PSAPs. With Next Gen 9-1-1 supporting a wide range of multimedia communications, emergency communication centers will also need solutions to capture and manage all of this new multimedia incident information. As part of ICE 2, NICE successfully completed the first phase of interoperability testing for its NiceLog VoIP recording platform and NICE Inform multimedia incident information management solution, capturing audio and related call information traveling through an ESInet from a SPAN port.

In the next round of testing (ICE 8), which will begin in June 2010, NICE will test other functionalities related to NG9-1-1 logging and recording, including an additional mode of capturing calls via SIP-based recording (active mode). When NG9-1-1 is fully implemented, SIP (Session Initiation Protocol) will be the protocol used to deliver multimedia communications over the ESInet as specified in NENA’s standards.

“The full potential of NG9-1-1 can only be realized through standards and through coordinated efforts,” said Ray Paddock, NENA NG9-1-1 Industry Collaboration Events Program Manager. “NENA’s Industry Collaboration Events are a forum whereby vendors of NG9-1-1 solutions, such as NICE Systems, can come together in an open, supportive, and collaborative environment to test their solutions. We’re very pleased with the results of the second ICE event and look forward to working with NICE and our other Industry Collaboration Event Planning Committee members to continue to advance the cause of Next Generation 9-1-1.”

“Next Generation 9-1-1 will bring significant new capabilities to emergency communications and each phase of ICE testing that is undertaken in NENA’s Industry Collaboration Events is a significant milestone in that direction,” said Chris Wooten, president, Security Division Americas, NICE. “NICE is committed to helping the industry achieve the vision of Next Gen 9-1-1 through continued participation in this very important process.”

About NICE Systems
NICE Systems is the leading provider of Insight from Interactions solutions and value-added services, powered by advanced analytics of unstructured multimedia content – from telephony, web, radio and video communications. NICE’s solutions address the needs of the enterprise and security markets, enabling organizations to operate in an insightful and proactive manner, and take immediate action to improve business and operational performance and ensure safety and security. NICE has over 24,000 customers in more than 150 countries, including more than 80 of the Fortune 100 companies. More information is available at http://www.nice.com.

About the National Emergency Number Association
NENA is The Voice of 9-1-1™. NENA promotes implementation and awareness of 9-1-1 as North America’s universal emergency number. NENA is the leading professional non-profit organization dedicated solely to 9-1-1 emergency communications issues. NENA serves its nearly 7,000 members in 48 chapters across the U.S., Canada and Mexico through policy advocacy, establishment of technical and operational standards, certification programs and a broad spectrum of educational offerings. Find out more at www.nena.org.