The Next Generation of 911: How NG911 is Expected to Thrive in America in the Future

Next Generation 911, also known as NG9-1-1, represents a nationwide public safety industry transformation initiative to enhance emergency response by adapting to the needs and rapidly evolving digital technology of citizens. 

The Next Generation 911 infrastructure introduces a wide variety of public safety advancements that will significantly expand and improve 911 communication capabilities. With the data shown in projections of various market research companies, NG911 is expected to provide PSAPs (Public Safety Answering Points) and other correlating agencies with continued adaptability and emergency response success.  

In this blog, our experts and leading providers of Next Generation 911 at NGA will discuss:

• What NG911 is
• How Next Generation 911 works
• How Next Generation 911 differs from the Legacy 911 system
• Future projections for NG911 in American
• Growth opportunities for the modern public safety infrastructure 

What is NG911?

NG911 stands for Next Generation 911. NG911 is an emergency communications infrastructure that runs on secure IP (Internet Protocol) and cloud-based networks. The Next Generation 911 system supports multimedia and voice communications between 911 callers, dispatchers, and first responders. 

NG911 also represents a nationwide initiative dedicated to deploying the Next Generation 911 system across the country. With a secure and highly reliable 911 infrastructure, public safety professionals will have the appropriate tools to provide more efficient and effective emergency response to their communities.

Implementing Next Generation 911 for all PSAPs across the nation also means that dispatchers will have the ability to interlope with other call centers and transfer all functions in an unprecedented disaster. 

How Does Next Generation 911 Work?

Because the Next Generation 911 infrastructure runs on secure but open cloud and IP-based networks, citizens in need of emergency assistance can transmit vital information to 911 professionals through various forms of multimedia.

The NG911 system supports the following forms of multimedia:

• Real-time text messaging 
• Voice messaging 
• Voice-to-text messaging
• Photos
• Video streaming 

Citizens can stream videos from an emergency incident and take pictures of accident damage or a fleeing suspect. Individuals in need can also send medical information via multimedia to help 911 personnel communicate this much-needed information to incident commanders and first responders.  

Next Generation 911 and Legacy 911: What is the Difference?

Although most of society has replaced house phones with smartphones, it may be surprising to learn that the technology of traditional 911 infrastructure, like Legacy 911, has not changed much since its first launch in 1968. 

The Legacy 911 infrastructure was built originally to support emergency calls from landline phones that are then connected to the PSAP. Because of this, traditional emergency response systems are unable to keep up with evolving technology and the increasing demand for a faster, more reliable, and more accurate 911 system.

The Next Generation 911 system will ensure that citizens reach emergency response professionals and receive 911 assistance no matter their locations or the communication technology they use. With NG911, caller location technology and geographic information system improvements now allow for precise 911 call routing based on a caller’s exact location. 

Future Projections for Next Generation 911 in the U.S.

Natural calamities and unprecedented events, like the COVID-19 pandemic, have pressured American counties and states that have not yet initiated Next Generation 911 deployments and system roll-outs for their emergency response organizations. 

Since COVID-19, The NG911 market penetration is projected to reach up to 95% by 2026 from 60% in 2020, based on the data percentage of the American population covered by closed Next Generation 911 contracts provided by several market research companies. 

Now more than ever, state legislation and local governments across the country are requesting statewide emergency response system upgrades to NG911. These requests have emerged as the most efficient approach to ensuring Next Generation 911 implementations nationwide. 

Predicted Public Safety Growth Opportunities with NG911 

As the NG911 system is deployed across the country, there will also be significant growth opportunities for more streamlined emergency response solutions that integrate with public safety infrastructures.

Next Generation 911 can help PSAPs and other public safety organizations unlock successful growth opportunities by: 

• Providing an integrated platform for NG911 with state-of-the-art features like cloud computing, data analytics, and embedded security. 
• Leveraging capital investments in network technologies to drive innovative applications and uses in public safety that improves incident intelligence and increases situational awareness for first responders. 
• Offering integrated data solutions that integrate with Next Generation 911 core systems to receive and distribute information to emergency response personnel. 
• Developing infrastructure solutions to organize, manage, and analyze the large amounts of NG911 data sources and differentiating them between “relevance” and “non-relevance” in an emergency. 

Conclusion 

With all that Next Generation 911 offers, it’s easy to see why NG911 is referred to as “the next generation of 911.” As states and local governments work together to ensure the implementation of the NG911 system, future predictions for the success of emergency response include improved services and more lives saved. 

Are you looking for more information about Next Generation 911 deployment and implementation?

Connect with our NG911 providers and reliable experts at NGA to start today!