BERWYN, Pa.– TruePosition, a provider of wireless location technologies and solutions and a subsidiary of Liberty Media Corporation, and industry analyst firm Ovum recently announced a new white paper that details the importance of locating indoor 9-1-1 phone calls, which are made from cell phones. Authored by Ovum analysts Jeremy Green and Sara Kaufman, the paper provides a history of Federal Communication Commission (FCC) Enhanced 9-1-1 mandates, reviews the two main wireless location technologies used to locate wireless 9-1-1 calls, and examines some of the misconceptions surrounding these location technologies. The white paper also includes a study on results from an extensive 9-1-1 test project.

“The test results show that certain wireless location technologies have limited performance when attempting to locate a 9-1-1 call made from inside of a building,” said Jeremy Green, Principal Analyst for Ovum. “This seems rather alarming, because there are millions of wireless 9-1-1 calls that are made indoors every year.”

According to the National Emergency Number Association (NENA), an estimated 240 million calls are made to 9-1-1 in the U.S. each year. In addition, according to the FCC, it is estimated that about 70 percent of 9-1-1 calls are placed from wireless phones, and that percentage is growing. Because of this, later in 2012, the FCC may rule on the way that it measures the performance of the wireless location technologies that are used to locate 9-1-1 calls. Part of the proposed FCC rules includes the ability to accurately locate calls that are made indoors.

The Ovum-authored white paper reviews the significance of an upcoming FCC ruling on indoor 9-1-1 location. Additionally, it offers an in-depth overview of previous 9-1-1 mandates, the last of which was voted on in July 2011. In an effort to further educate readers, the report describes the two main wireless location technologies – Assisted-GPS (A-GPS) and Uplink Time Difference of Arrival (U-TDOA) – and addresses some misconceptions about their performance. The white paper also reveals test results from testing conducted in Wilmington, Delaware, where both wireless location technologies were used to locate wireless 9-1-1 calls.

“As people continue to stop their fixed-line phone service, and solely use their cell phone as their primary means of communication, the number of people who use their cell phone to dial 9-1-1 will continue to rise at an astounding rate,” stated Michael Amarosa, Senior Vice President for Public Affairs for TruePosition. “The good news is there are wireless location solutions, which exist today that can quickly and accurately locate cell phones regardless of whether the person is indoors, inside of a car, or deep within a city, surrounded by skyscrapers.”

The white paper, entitled “The Importance of Locating Wireless 9-1-1 Calls Indoors,” will become available online immediately following an educational webinar of the same name, which will take place on April 19, 2012 at 1:00 PM Eastern Time. One can register for the webinar, by using the following URL: http://www.visualwebcaster.com/NENA/84644/reg.asp?ref=NENA.

Hosted by NENA, the webinar features a panel of expert spokespeople, including the following: Trey Forgety, the Government Affairs Director for NENA, Sara Kaufman, a Telecommunications Analyst for Ovum, and Rash Mia, the Vice President of Technology and Chief Scientist for TruePosition.

ABOUT TRUEPOSITION

TruePosition (www.trueposition.com) is the global leader in location determination and intelligence solutions that help protect citizens, combat crime, and save lives. TruePosition U-TDOA is a location technology that can accurately and reliably locate any mobile phone in any environment, where other location technologies such as A-GPS cannot. This makes TruePosition U-TDOA uniquely suited to meet the mission-critical location-based safety and security requirements of enterprises and government agencies. These solutions include future-proof technologies, innovative applications, and comprehensive networking and systems services. TruePosition has more patents, technical expertise, and operational experience in wireless location than any other company in the world. Every day more than 100 million people depend on location services supported by TruePosition technology. TruePosition is owned by Liberty Media Corporation.