Understanding Broadband Speed Data in NTIA’s Indicators of Broadband Need

The National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) recently released a new public map, the Indicators of Broadband Need. This publicly available resource accompanies the National Broadband Availability Map (NBAM), pulling together public and private broadband internet access service datasets. The Indicators of Broadband Need map and National Broadband Availability map are both proving helpful to communities as they plan how and where to improve broadband services for their residents. But the landscape of assessing or measuring who does and doesn’t receive quality and affordable Internet service is complicated by the conflation of measurement datasets covering different aspects of Internet connectivity and user experience. In a recent Measurement Lab (M-Lab) article, we discuss the inclusion of data from our Network Diagnostic Tool (NDT) in the NTIA map and dig into the detail of each dataset provided in the Indicators of Broadband Need map. The post gives readers a deeper understanding of the differences and context to the various datasets in the NTIA Indicators of Broadband Need Map, as well as our understanding of how each relates to the 25/3 national broadband standard.

[Chris Ritzo is the Program Management & Community Lead for Measurement Lab, where he supports researchers, policymakers, advocacy groups, and individuals interested in M-Lab’s open Internet measurement data. Lai Yi Ohlsen is the Director of Measurement Lab, a fiscally sponsored project of Code for Science & Society. Previously, she worked to defend and promote human rights online with eQualitie as Technical Programs Manager.]