ABSTRACT
This chapter develops a better understanding of the spatial dynamics of broadband availability in the United States using data from the National Broadband Map (NBM). It is important to emphasize that although the "core vs. periphery" framework is somewhat naive, especially given the other important facets of broadband provision, it still provides an excellent foundation for exploring the spatial distribution of broadband provision, regional differences and inequities. It is important to explore micropolitan areas because they represent smaller, urbanizing areas across the United States. Although Baltimore is used as the example in the chapter, the deployment gradient for places like Springfield, Missouri or Boise, Idaho would be different. The Broadband Data Improvement (BDI) is used as the exploratory tool for detecting the differences between each metropolitan area. A non-parametric approach, kernel density analysis, is used to illustrate the spatial decay of broadband provision density for a case study of the Baltimore, MD region.
