A glimpse into mobile phone data: characteristics, organization, tools

This paper aims to present the presence and mobility data provided by TIM, highlighting the acquisition methodology, the levels of spatial and temporal disaggregation, as well as the additional information related to age groups, gender, and classification of behaviours, which are directly supplied by TIM. The construction of a baseline based on mobile phone data for the comparison of temporal trends in the presence of people is also discussed. At the same time, the supporting data obtained from traditional sources or ad hoc surveys will be presented to show how they can facilitate the interpretation of telephone data, its validation, and its use. Finally, a reference on the operational tools used for their processing and visualization will highlight the need to integrate skills, methodologies, and tools for the maximum exploitation of this wealth of information.