Synopsis
The major market for two-way radio systems is in the traditional emergency services and public services markets – police, fire brigades, ambulance services, railways, utility companies, and councils. Private applications are also extensive and can be found in the security, hospitality, education, transport, industrial and mining industries, oil and gas exploration, and on rural properties in the outback.
Over the last decade the market has very much been a replacement market, with about 100,000-150,000 terminals sold per annum.
While there were indications that the market was going into a new phase as many systems need to be replaced and upgraded, this has so far not occurred. The question therefore is if the predicted doubling of the market size will actually occur, especially in the wake of other wireless mobile developments.
The arrival of Airwave Solutions in the market is interesting; it was the company in the United Kingdom (UK) that for the first time pulled all the public safety mobile radio services into one national network. Stimulated by the lower cost and feature benefits of TETRA standard, many countries outside North America are already operating, or considering citywide, county or nationwide networks. The strong motivation for ongoing success of TETRA in these international markets is the open standard (ETSI based), its frequency efficiency, and rich features. Its multivendor environment is supported by a formalised interoperability regime. Eventually Australia will also not be able to afford its current ageing and frequency inefficient closed networks.