Comms Connect plenary preview: the future of PSMB in Australia

On day one of Comms Connect Melbourne, a plenary conference session helmed by the NSW Telco Authority (NSWTA) and the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) will provide an update on the Public Safety Mobile Broadband (PSMB) program in Australia. The session on 16 October will be taking place just weeks after NEMA closed its request for information (RFI) for a national PSMB capability.

The Australian, state and territory governments are working together through the National PSMB Taskforce, established in August 2023 and led by NEMA, to build the foundations for an Australian PSMB capability. PSMB will deliver a mission-critical, national mobile broadband capability for exclusive and prioritised use by emergency services organisations, enabling greater use of data-heavy technologies, improving situational awareness and providing a standardised environment for coordination of multi-agency responses.

The RFI was the first phase of the PSMB Taskforce’s market approach, and sought to find out what technical and service offerings are available in the market; understand the costs of creating and running a national PSMB network; and prequalify vendors for procurement in the 2025–26 financial year. If approved by government to proceed, procurement will be the second phase of the market approach, focusing on the technology, coverage, infrastructure, goods and services required to deliver and operate a PSMB network.

In their presentation, NSWTA Managing Director Kylie De Courteney (pictured) and NEMA Assistant Coordinator General Brad Creevey will outline the need for PSMB and the benefits it will bring to our first responders, providing a glimpse into the future uses of PSMB and current examples from around the globe. Creevey’s insights will be particularly welcome as he serves as Australian Government lead for the PSMB Taskforce, and is firmly committed to laying the foundations for a national PSMB capability.

The full Comms Connect conference program is available now on the event website. Flexible registration packages are available, including group discounts.