[EAS] San Jose CA midnight evacuation order

[Ed Czarnecki]

Now just hold on a minute ;^)  I understand what you're saying Art, but I
just want to add a few counterpoints.

"IPAWS origination software isn't cheap" - that's arguable. There is one
vendor our there with a app (albeit limited functionality) that costs a few
hundred dollars.  We have an integrated CAP/EAS originator that is bundled
with a CAP/EAS unit - at not much more than the cost of upgrading an old EAS
unit.  Yes, there are mega-mass notification products out there (I saw one
state contract that was many tens of thousands of dollars per year).  But
the cost hurdle to get a basic IPAWS origination tool is pretty darn low.
In fact, I might argue that the government has (perhaps inadvertently)
leveled the alert origination field such that the "IPAWS origination
business" is barely economically viable.  Hence the small number of vendors
with cost-effective IPAWS tools, vs. very costly solutions that have IPAWS
tools as an add-on.

"in the past vendors have lobbied vigorously against what they saw as unfair
government competition" - that's a pretty broad brush.  There are long
standing Federal laws against government entering into competition with the
private sector.  FWIW, the Canadian national alert system infrastructure is
pretty much almost entirely private sector (their version of IPAWS is run by
Pelmorex - their "Weather Channel" - and it seems to be working out pretty
well).

"zero-sum ethics of the marketplace overlaid on the public-good focus of
government" - I don't see the marketplace as black and white as a world of
zero-sum ethics (only one guy wins, all others lose).  In fact, we see the
public warning industry as essentially one of coopetition (though I dislike
that portmanteau).  Hence our open working relationships with mass
notification firms, large and small.  But I will acknowledge that there are
some MNS and alert vendors that take an stereotypical zero-sum approach.
Neither public safety agencies nor the public win with that kind of
strategy.

The "public good focus of government" may also be too simple of a statement.
Government agencies have operated in a zero-sum manner as well - we all have
seen the turf wars.  The public does not win there as well.

It is an odd world, and some have trouble accepting that some private sector
entities have incorporated the public good as part of their core business
philosophy ... and some in the government sector pursue a zero-sum tactic as
ruthless as any business.  

"We're the private sector ... and we're here to help"  ;^)

-----Original Message-----
From: EAS [mailto:eas-bounces at radiolists.net] On Behalf Of Botterell,
Arthur at CalOES

Uhhh... thanks, Jim!

The big obstacle we face right now is competitiveness.  Given that IPAWS
origination software isn't cheap, many local agencies get diverted by sales
reps to other commercial offerings.  And once they make that investment,