Crowd-Sourced Broadband Maps Often More Useful Than Government Efforts, Panel Says

WASHINGTON, February 20, 2022 – Broadband maps created using crowd-sourced data can often be more useful in planning internet access than mapping efforts shepherded by state governments and higher ups, a panel of broadband data experts said.

The experts emphasized that incentives for states and grant deployment alone do not lead to successful broadband deployment and that stakeholder and community engagement are essential to calculated expansion plans.

The panel was convened earlier this month as part of the Broadband Breakfast Live Online webcast series, aiming to create dialogue on how to improve broadband mapping practices.

As opposed to some statewide efforts at broadband mapping that are mandated by state law, cofounder of consulting firm Breaking Point Solutions Glenn Fishbine spoke of community-based proposals in which individuals who are very tapped into the area where they live collect broadband data from those they know and submit it to the government. His GEO Software is distributed by GEO Partners.

Fishbine has observed areas where this has produced better mapping results than bureaucratic top-down governmental approaches to mapping.

Such methods are often much faster than states waiting for federal assistance in mapping.

Similarly, collecting data on a location basis rather than looking just at census blocks is essential to mapping, particularly for looking at overbuilding such as for disbursement of American Rescue Plan Act funds as University of Georgia Institute of Government Associate Director Eric McRae discussed.

Fishbine highlighted that different mapping approaches like this are unique to what data is trying to be collected – digital inequity studies may require one approach while looking at unserved areas and infrastructure in need of upgrades may require different approaches.

He also highlighted the need for plans to be cost-effective, demonstrating software he has worked on that allows for determination of what infrastructure projects are most likely to win grants based on prescribed grant criteria.

Picking which projects to pursue funding for in this manner is essential due to the fact that grant writers’ labor is a finite resource and they cannot apply to fund every single proposed project.

In the discussion, Kathryn de Wit of the Pew Charitable Trusts’ broadband access initiative advocated for state broadband official engagement during infrastructure rollout. That will ensure better deployment opportunities in states beyond what federal grants alone will do.

Our Broadband Breakfast Live Online events take place on Wednesday at 12 Noon ET. You can also PARTICIPATE in the current Broadband Breakfast Live Online event. REGISTER HERE.

Wednesday, February 2, 2022, 12 Noon ET — Better Broadband Mapping, Part 1

This Broadband Breakfast Live Online event will kick off a series about how we can get better broadband mapping and data for making the most of the Infrastructure, Investment and Jobs Act funds. We’ll speak with policy-makers, map-makers, state officials and those building out broadband relying on broadband maps.

Panelists for this Broadband Breakfast Live Online session:

• Kathryn de Wit, Project Director, The Pew Charitable Trusts
• Eric McRae, Associate Director, University of Georgia Institute of Government
• Glenn Fishbine, Co-founder, Breaking Point Solutions, LLC
• Drew Clark (moderator), Editor and Publisher, Broadband Breakfast

Panelist resources:

• Broadband Education and Training Initiative Helps States Increase High Speed Internet Access, Pew Trusts
• Broadband Maps Are Mess, So Now Let’s Focus on Actually Improving them, by Drew Clark

Kathryn de Wit directs The Pew Charitable Trusts’ broadband access initiative, which works to accelerate efforts to connect millions of Americans to affordable, reliable high-speed internet. Before joining Pew, de Wit was an associate with Booz Allen Hamilton, where she focused on broadband deployment, organizational management, and public affairs. De Wit holds bachelor’s degrees in communications and sociology from Penn State University and a master’s in public administration from the University of Pittsburgh.

Eric McRae is responsible for the Institute of Government’s Office of Information Technology Outreach Services (ITOS), which helps state and local governments incorporate into their operations a wide array of geographic information systems (GIS) technology, including parcel mapping, digitizing paper maps, and integrating transportation/addressing systems. He has managed multiple local, state, national, and international GIS projects and initiatives and has served on and chaired numerous GIS and information technology boards and committees, including the National States Geographic Information Council. Eric was integral in the development of the state of Georgia Broadband Map.

Glenn Fishbine has been involved with startup technologies for his entire career resulting in over a dozen U.S. patents. In 2011 he co-founded Breaking Point Solutions, LLC, a technology development company which later developed the GEO software for broadband mapping used in over a dozen states and rapid design studies performed for over 200 clients. The GEO Software is distributed by GEO Partners, LLC.

Drew Clark is the Editor and Publisher of BroadbandBreakfast.com and a nationally-respected telecommunications attorney. Drew brings experts and practitioners together to advance the benefits provided by broadband. Under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, he served as head of a State Broadband Initiative, the Partnership for a Connected Illinois. He is also the President of the Rural Telecommunications Congress.

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