FCC Mandates Text-to-911 From All US Wireless Carriers 80
An anonymous reader writes "On Friday, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) voted to require all U.S. wireless carriers and popular messaging applications to support texting to emergency response units via 911. AT&T, Verizon, Sprint, and T-Mobile implemented this capability back in 2012; the FCC's vote will make it mandatory for all carriers that operate in the country as well as all messaging applications that interconnect with the SMS structure in the U.S. to follow suit. One technological hurdle this mandate faces is the difficulty of tracing "the exact physical origin of a text message, particularly in residences with multiple floors.""
Somehow I doubt that cellphone calls are consistently traceable to that degree, either, and I've lived in houses with extensions spread over several floors, too.
Useful for low-coverage areas (Score:5, Funny)
Lots of places can get a text through where voice calls will fail. Especially if you're down in a ravine off a road in a marginal area.
Now then, I've had a cell phone for 18 years and nothing has changed (regarding coverage gaps - the bills have gone way up). Curious that the FCC is just noticing this now - maybe one of the Commissioners left the metropolis for a few days.