Aether Systems Secures Omaha Police Wireless Contract

Wireless service provider Aether Systems Inc., Owings Mills, Md., is providing the Omaha, Neb. police department with a mobile data system, Aether announced Oct. 1.

Neither Aether nor the Omaha Police Department would disclose the amount of the Aether contract, although a spokesperson for the police department said the entire mobile information project, which also includes desktop computers, was valued at $1.2 million.

"Our goal is to implement a scaleable wireless infrastructure that will support our police department as well as other public safety agencies in the metropolitan area," said Gary Anderson, manager of public safety at the Omaha Police Department. "Aether's mobile data system will enable us to better communicate and share information, thereby significantly increasing the efficiency and effectiveness of area-wide public safety operations."

In the first phase of the project, Aether's software will be installed on 100 to 150 vehicle-mounted computers.

The system will provide police officers and other crime enforcement personnel in the field with real-time, silent messaging capabilities. It also will allow them to access to local, state and federal databases, as well employ field data collection and reporting tools.