Implementing the mobile alert system in Romania could take a year

Mobile operators in Romania are willing to work with the state on introducing the emergency alert system for the population, but implementing the system could take up to a year and depends on the technical solution chosen by the authorities, writes local Profit.ro. Mobile operators don’t yet have the technical equipment for such a system or a common platform with the Special Telecommunications Service (STS). These were the first conclusions on this topic of the largest telecom operators in Romania, Orange, Telekom and Vodafone, during a parliamentary debate. The working group within the telecom regulator ANCOM needs to clearly state what responsibilities each party has, what are the costs and who will bear these costs, according to the telecom operators. "At the moment, private operators are not ready for the cell broadcasting system and they need investments in communications equipment, software and other STS compatibility elements," said Mihai Constantin, who represented the three telecom operators. The Romanian Government declared the introduction of an emergency population warning system a priority after severe storms in the Western part of the country on August 17 left 8 people dead and 145 hurt. editor@romania-insider.com