Mapping and Tracking

In accordance with a federal grant from the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) of the US Department for Commerce, the broadband division of the North Carolina Department of Commerce is responsible for mapping out and tracking broadband availability across North Carolina.

The NTIA's federal grant program (1) allows states to collect comprehensive and accurate state-level broadband mapping data as well as create statewide broadband availability maps. The online North Carolina Broadband map, created under this federal grant, was launched in November 2010 and reflects the data submitted from broadband service providers. This map is searchable by address. The accuracy and level of detail for a particular address will depend on whether the underlying data from that provider was submitted by census block, address range or with specific addresses.

State-level data is also funneled into the development and maintenance of the National Broadband Map. Data is collected and submitted to the NTIA twice a year - once in the spring and once in the fall. The data collection process and mapping work runs from fall of 2009 to fall of 2014. During this time, the NTIA and the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) will determine best practices to data collection and plotting out broadband availability on a national scale.

View the North Carolina Broadband Map

Data Collection Methods

Multiples methods are used to collect broadband data, including:

• Collecting data directly from Broadband Service Providers;
• Collecting local level broadband Consumer Data;
• Collecting provider data through a national data corporation which uses Data Mining/Web-Crawling techniques; and
• Using a Radio Wave Propagation Prediction model to determine wireless coverage in North Carolina.

Broadband Service Providers

113 identified broadband providers serving North Carolina were encouraged to participate in the Fall 2010 data collection process. Of those, 56 participated. Non-Disclosure Agreements are offered to participating providers as well as one-on-one technical assistance on how to submit the data requested by the NTIA.

Broadband providers are asked to submit data on who they serve, or could serve, and with what speeds of service. Data is submitted by census block, of which there are more than 233,000 in the state, by street segment (address ranges), or providers can submit specific addresses they serve.

Consumer Data

In spring 2000, the Kenan Institute of Private Enterprise at UNC-Chapel Hill conducted a Consumer Survey, which examined broadband availability in homes. Of the more than 10,300 telephone interviews completed, 9,259 came from respondents with traditional landline household telephone numbers while 1,044 came from wireless numbers.

Results of the Consumer Survey are not included in the online North Carolina Broadband map. However, results are used to assess the accuracy, cost and feasibility of the various broadband data collection methods.

Data Mining/Web-Crawling

Many broadband service providers, especially larger providers, offer listings on their websites about the areas they serve, connection speeds and pricing. There are several national data corporations that specialize in collecting this information through data-mining/web crawling applications. One data set on broadband availability has been purchased using this approach and there is the possibility of contracting with private companies to continue additional data collection in this way. The feasibility of data-mining/web crawling is continually assessed for cost and accuracy of the data captured.

Radio Wave Modeling to Predict Wireless Coverage

One significant challenge is determining broadband availability of the coverage areas of wireless providers. If a household has a cable modem line or DSL line, they are considered to have broadband service available. For a wireless provider who sends out signals in a particular direction, it is difficult to determine which households can receive a signal. Large wireless providers may have sophisticated applications to map their coverage areas, whereas many smaller providers do not.

In 2010, the Center for Geographic Information Science (CGISc) at UNC-Greensboro built a radio wave propagation prediction model to identify and predict coverage areas for fixed wireless and mobile broadband providers across the state. This model of gathering data is dependent on the collection of antenna heights, transmission frequencies and equipment usage information from wireless providers. Upon submission from participating providers, CGISc conducted field tests within the various frequency ranges to test the coverage areas. The team also looked at line of sight and non-line of site locations, measuring location coordinates, signal strength and environmental conditions. Hundreds of these measurements were then used to create coverage prediction models for each unique combination of geography and frequency within the study area. This model now exists as an important resource for the state in predicting coverage areas for wireless providers.

(1) http://www2.ntia.doc.gov/SBDD