In Reports and Publications

WHAT IS THE VALUE OF THE LAND MOBILE RADIO (LMR) INDUSTRY?

ARCIA has been aware for some time that there is no real information on the value of the LMR industry to Australia. There is an obvious benefit with regard to the Emergency Services and their efficient operations, plus it is accepted that many of the major resource projects also have a very real need for radio communications, yet this has never been fully evaluated.

As a result, ARCIA commissioned Windsor Place Consulting (WPC) to conduct an economic research project to document some of the important values that our industry offers to the community. The consultants have interviewed many facets of the industry, from suppliers through dealers and the end users, plus discussions will with Public Safety users. It has also been necessary to seek information from other industry sectors to evaluate the use of LMR communications and how they compare to the alternatives available, including predictions on how other technologies may develop over the coming years.

With the developments in digital radio technologies, the changing needs of users and competing demands for spectrum, this research could well be of importance in future planning for many organisations.

The report is attached and can be downloaded from here.

Amongst the major findings of the report are:

  • The economic benefits of LMR spectrum use is between $1.99 billion and $3.72 billion per annum.
  • This is compared to an annual opportunity cost of only $39.7 million, indicating the benefits of LMR are at least 10 times greater than the next best alternative.
  • The report raises serious questions about the substitutability of alternatives to radio, which need to be carefully considered by ACMA and the Australian Government.
  • Organisations that use LMR, particularly emergency and first responder services, are highly dependent on mission critical radio to provide essential public services.
  • Users are highly committed to LMR technologies that provide important advantages, including ‘one-to-many’ communication, immediate and continual voice connectivity, and  ability to operate effectively without mobile cellular infrastructure.

Full details are available in the report – download here.

For questions and comments please contact ARCIA on [email protected]

As always, ARCIA are active in looking towards the ongoing value of the LMR industry and this is another example of our commitment towards improvement.