BIPT’s network maps allow you to look up which types of networks are available in your street and at what speed. ITdaily gets a behind-the-scenes look at how the atlas was created.
Want to know if there is already fiber in your street? Wondering which municipality in Belgium has the fastest Internet? Telecom regulator BIPT launched network maps for fixed and mobile Internet throughout Belgium at the end of 2022. In this digital atlas, available via BIPT’s data portal, you can examine the network coverage for fixed lines, fiber, 4G and 5G in your area, among others. You can zoom in to your address to see all the details.
To develop the network maps, BIPT called on the expert help of Agilytic, a Brussels-based data company, following a public tender. Yannick Dewilde, working at BIPT until May 2024, and Caroline Dozin, project manager at Agilytic, testify to ITdaily how the collaboration went.
Promoting competition
Network maps are the result of a confluence of data. What data exactly? “Data on addresses of households and businesses come from the Belgian state land registry,” Dozin answers. “The operators then provide data on which network technology is available where, and the speed at each location.”
“Predictions by operators are validated with BIPT’s own measurements,” adds Dewilde further. We have cars driving around to take measurements. A subcontractor performs tests to measure the customer experience, such as making calls and downloading files. BIPT wants to use this data to promote competition between operators. By offering that information to consumers in this way, they can compare for themselves.”


Down to the address level
All the data sources then had to be processed into a visual representation that would be clear to the average consumer without a master’s degree in data analysis. No mean feat, Dewilde recalls.
“Operators often have their own database and architecture of the telecom network. That makes it complex to bring everything together. Operators use different metrics or provide data in different formats. The maps also have to be updated several times a year. Step by step, the maps have become more precise down to the address level.”
Dozin cites additional difficulties. “We work with a lot of personal data. The sensitivity of the data is a challenge we had to take into account. BIPT already had access to this data. They gave us a contract, in accordance with GDPR legislation, to work with this data. When we send address points to operators, we have to be careful not to include personal data of the residents at the address.”
The right speed
Dozin goes on to explain how Agilytic proceeded. “We always start from the business objectives and what is available from data. That was no different for this project, although the nature of the data was unique. Processing geographic data requires specific skills. First, we had to explore data and perform a quality check to detect any duplicate address data or other inconsistencies. Then comes the business flow: what is the outcome you want to achieve with the data? A non-technical person has to be able to upload data and get the right output.”
For this purpose, a tool was developed by Agilytic’s team. Dewilde: “The operators fill in the data. Those files are used in the tool to match the ‘pixels’ so that the output is the same for all operators. It used to be complex to update the portal. Now the number of files is already greatly reduced, but the kpi’s could be streamlined even further.”
“We adapt to the needs around performance and speed,” Dozin picks up again. “The dashboard is updated several times a year. This allows for a longer process. It would be completely different if the data had to be updated daily. Then it’s a matter of being creative to move faster.”
Further automating
The path to further optimizing the process has been mapped out, says Dewilde. “A lot of complexity has already been eliminated, but human intervention remains necessary. A next step is to fully automate the process.”
“Between the output of the system and the input into the portal, there is indeed human work involved now. But the output provided by the portal is readable by a non-analytical person. In the next step, we want to develop a visualization tool for the BIPT teams themselves,” Dozin adds further.
“Agilytic understands the needs of BIPT and also understands that the organization was not yet fully mature in data science. The path is now set for BIPT to develop further in this and increase maturity. Employees no longer always have to call or email when they need certain data. That sounds like the basics, but it is very important,” Dewilde concludes.