Northrop wins $500 million NYC contract

The L.A.-based company will build a high-speed wireless data network designed to allow New York cops and firefighters to better communicate in emergency situations. That was a big problem in the early hours of the WTC disaster - and has become a big opportunity for defense contractors looking to diversify. Lockheed Martin is also moving into this arena; it signed a deal with New York's Metropolitan Transportation Authority to develop an electronic security system for the city's bridges, tunnels and stations. Backgrounder: A recent piece in Network World notes that most cities and states still don't have adequate communications networks for first responders - stuff like broadband speeds for text messaging, images and streaming video.