November 10, 2021 – The Federal Communications Commission has awarded a $44.9 million contract to CostQuest Associates Inc. to create a Broadband Serviceable Location Fabric.

The “Fabric” will be a common dataset of all locations in the U.S. where fixed broadband internet access service can be installed, and is a key component of the FCC’s new Broadband Data Collection program. Broadband service providers will provide the FCC with granular and detailed coverage data which will be layered on top of the Fabric, thereby giving the FCC an accurate picture of broadband coverage in the U.S. and creating a more accurate national broadband map.

CostQuest describes itself as a consulting firm that “builds datasets and custom models to help you make decisions about communications or utilities infrastructure.”

The potential value of the awarded Fabric contract is $44,921,200.

The FCC released a Request for Proposals (RFP) to create the Broadband Serviceable Location Fabric on June 1, 2021, with responses due July 1, 2021. However, a pre-award protest was filed with Government Accountability Office following the RFP response deadline, which forced the FCC to issue a revised RFP on August 13, 2021. Revised proposals were due August 26, 2021. The contract to develop the Fabric was then ultimately awarded on November 9, 2021, to CostQuest.