The popularity and improvement of GSM networks have allowed ECMs to migrate to GPRS alarm monitoring, as this technology is offering economic benefits and better service to end users as telco companies have invested in network infrastructure in order to expand the cellular coverage of the Global System for Mobile Communications. viles (GSM), enabling the alternative business of monitoring through GPRS to have broad growth and positioning in the Latin American field. These features prompted ECMs to offer GPRS alarm monitoring services, as well as prompted manufacturers to design products so that alarms could send their signals using this technology.
At the time of migrating to this type of monitoring, the new costs and investments take an important role for the plants, so that they must choose very well what change they will make, since they can install a GPRS receiver, which receives the events from all the equipment through the GPRS service and sends them to the monitoring software emulating a telephone receiver est anddar; or they can integrate GPRS into the same monitoring software, which is allowed by some newer programs, as they already have an IP/GPRS module.
On the other hand, it is important that the GPRS communicator has a good emulation method that "deceives" the panel by making it believe that it is connected by land line as always, and directly with the ECM to be able to continue using all the installed equipment. As for savings for the customer it can be said that since the telephone line is no longer used the cost on the utility bill will be less expensive.
On the other hand, when monitoring companies began to migrate to GPRS they found IP technology and its benefits, which made the decision more difficult, however many decided on GPRS transmission because it does not use cables, although well-managed IP transfer is a good choice for certain users.
In the case of monitoring through ADSL or broadband in households that already have access and are the ones who pay for the connection, there will surely be a lower monthly cost for the ECM; the problem is that the penetration of ADSL in Latin America still does not have coverage, on the other hand, GSM is practically everywhere.
A disadvantage of GPRS monitoring is the carrier of cell phones, because there is depending on a third party, however the same thing happens with the physical pair if there is no sabotage, but if there is a failure by the same owner of the service, the events would not reach the central.
Nowadays, GPRS monitoring is a reality because, according to experts in Latin America, this market will grow by around 30 or 40 percent this year.
