Ohio gets $1.8M in stimulus money to help create map of broadband Internet access

Ohio gets stimulus money for broadband mapping

COLUMBUS, Ohio — Ohio is getting $1.8 million in federal stimulus money to help create a map of where broadband Internet access is available and how fast it is.

The money is part of a larger effort to create a national map that will guide policies aimed at expanding high-speed Internet access. Stimulus awards to Ohio and 14 other states were announced this week by the U.S. Department of Commerce.

Internet service providers have committed to handing over data about where they have broadband coverage.

Ohio found in 2008 that broadband is available to more than 90 percent of residents, but only half subscribed to the service. Access is a problem in urban neighborhoods with high poverty, isolated rural counties and mountainous areas where rugged terrain make laying cable expensive.