NC's state's broadband coverage

RALEIGH, N.C. - North Carolina consumers are getting a glimpse at how much of the state has broadband Internet access and where people are stuck with slower dial-up service.

A legislative panel that has looked for ways to expand high-speed Internet access into rural areas on Thursday unveiled a map showing that broadband service is available to 92 percent of the state's households.

About 240,000 households primarily in rural parts of eastern North Carolina lag behind for a service increasingly considered as necessary for business and education.

The broadband availability map also is a condition for landing part of the $7.4 billion in federal stimulus funds states can claim to expand the service. The map is on the web site www.connectnorthcarolina.org.