Tuesday, September 14, 2010

FCC Releases Database APIs

Last week the FCC announced [pdf] that it has released APIs for four of its databases: Consumer Broadband Speed Test, Census Block Search, FCC Registration Number (FRN) Conversion, and FCC License View.

This means that people with fundamental coding skills will be able to analyze and present FCC data in new and hopefully insightful ways. For instance, the FCC Licence database could lead to some very striking graphical portrayals of media ownership consolidation.

Some early users have reported gaps in the data and unexpected results in using this data, but the FCC hopes that citizen software developers will create "mash-ups and data calls" to "leverage government data in ways never imagined." While the FCC may be coming a bit late to this game, if its goal is to remake itself with "dot com" responsiveness, it's good to know it at least has its hands on the appropriate jargon. Kidding aside, this is a move in the direction of greater transparency and usability of fundamental information about our national telecommunications system.

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