Court: FCC Can't Regulate On Net Neutrality

A federal appeals court ruled Tuesday that the Federal Communications Commission lacks the authority to require broadband providers to give equal treatment to all Internet traffic flowing over their networks.

The ruling by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia is a big victory for Comcast Corp., the nation's largest cable company. It had challenged the FCC's authority to impose so-called "net neutrality" obligations on broadband providers.

The ruling also marks a serious setback for the FCC, which is trying to officially set net neutrality regulations. FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski argues that such rules are needed to prevent phone and cable companies from using their control over Internet access to favor some online content and services over others.

The decision also has serious implications for the massive national broadband plan released by the FCC last month. The FCC needs clear authority to regulate broadband in order to push ahead with some its key recommendations, including a proposal to expand broadband by tapping the federal fund that subsidizes telephone service in poor and rural communities.



The ruling also is likely to shift the debate to whether Congress will choose to explicitly grant the FCC the authority to regulate companies' network management practices, and revive lobbying coalitions that have been defunct for the last few years.

The Battle over Net Neutrality
Is Net Neutrality in Trouble?
Understanding Net Neutrality

The court case centered on Comcast's challenge of a August 2008 FCC cease and desist order against Comcast banning the company from blocking its broadband subscribers from using an online file-sharing technology known as BitTorrent. The commission, at the time headed by Republican Kevin Martin, based its order on a set of net-neutrality principles it adopted in 2005 to prevent broadband providers from becoming online gatekeepers. Those principles have guided the FCC's enforcement of communications laws on a case-by-case basis, and now Genachowski is trying to formalize those rules.

[Lindasb11]

Th court is NOT legislating from the bench! It is congress job to legislate. In the same vain FCC has legislated a law that they have NO right to legislate. SCOTUS has already ruled that FCC cannot regulate the internet only congress can legislate. Please all get a clue!

[brianbwb2011]

If an ISP has problems because they sold more subscriptions than they have the bandwidth to deliver as advertised, then they should be required to either meet the demand, or charge a lower fee.

Why should anyone pay broadband prices for less than broadband service?

Go to a country like Singapore, or Japan, or Korea, if you cannot get at least 1 mbs, you can complain, and if it happens for a total time of more than 1 week in a month, you don't have to pay that month.

Funny how these countries have better and cheaper internet service than the US, isn't it?

[rightbehind]

The rest of the world is leading on a lot of things especially health care and energy. The sheeple here fall pray to ideology. Some think freedom is lining the pockets of ceos.

[rightbehind]

The paid lobbyist hacks are busy on this site. We the People are about to be robbed by corporate interest once again. You need to be calling your representatives and demanding the activist judges be impeached for this decision. Make sure that you have the right to the same bandwidth as the corporations or you will be paying extra. It's time for some of you to wake up and realise that freedom is not having to line a ceo pocket.

[hateisafourletterword]

Well liberals lets just see. Providers of net content - CBS, ABC, CNN, MSNBC, NBC, PBS - can we get more left wing that them?

Oh yeah - Fox. God forbid the conservatives had one outlet right liberals.

Then there is the NYT, Post, Globe, LA Times, SF Chronicle - I know liberals, these are far right wing news distributors.

What would you liberals do without all the far right news providers to pick on. I guess you can always read the slightly right wing Democratic Underground or Huffington Post.

[brianbwb2011]

Such an idiot.

This ruling basically says that Comcast can block your TV cable from giving you internet, forcing you to have a cable TV account, and a separate internet account.

Or conversely, it can block the internet from streaming videos, forcing you again to shell out for Cable.

What a maroon

Besides, we may well be better off without the mentally ill, ASPD-afflicted hate mongers hiding behind the name "conservative".

Now I can say that the court does have a constitutional point, but there is nothing that says we the people, who lease the bandwidth to content providers and ISPs, cannot require net neutrality as a prerequisite for leasing the bandwidth in the future, if they cannot meet our requirements, they don't get ttheir lease approved.

[rightbehind]

Freedom for sale. Your rights to the Internet have just been given away by a court. This is another bunch legislating from the bench. Freedom is on the ballot. You can vote for the party that favors individual rights which are the democrats or you can vote for the party that looks out for corporate rights the republicans. If they get the Internet your national highway system will be next. They turn them all into toll roads. We need to throw every republican out of office before the last of our freedoms are sold to the highest bidder.

[hateisafourletterword]

Ah actually leftbehind you have it backasswards as usual. Republicans are much more for individual rights. Democrats are for more government rights.

[m0u5y]

Actually, the Republicans are much more for Corporate rights. In fact, they worship the all-powerful God, money.

[rightbehind]

Stop the corporations call your representatives and stop this. This court is legislating from the bench. Could be some pockets may have gotten lined on this one. Your freedom is about to be sold to the highest bidder. Stomp on the paid political lobbyist hacks that post on these pages. Freedom has just hit the ballot. You like having access to the Internet the FCC currently gives it to you. Better vote for democrats because republicans always favor the corporations. The republicans will tank the FCC just like they have tried with the US Post Office forcing it to pay health care insurance 10 years in advance. We need to throw all republicans out of office.

[rightbehind]

Call your representatives and get them working on a law that insures your right to the Internet. Once you loose it it's gone. The corporation have hacks filling these blogs with garbage that is not in the best interest of the people. Next they'll be taking your Federal highway system and you'll be paying the trolls everywhere you go. Doesn't exactly look like a picture of freedom does it? Stop this court from legislating from the bench. If God really thought that capitalism works best you would be paying for every breath you take. Freedom is on the line here. Don't allow a corporate takeover of the Internet. You need to stomp on the political lobbyist hacks posting on these pages.

[txlakeside]

Only $50 a month for all you can use .. (All you can use is determined by Corp as 5GB month max for phones and no BT's at home)

Kind of like EXXON selling gas $5.00 a gallon (but 20 gallons a month max unless you have a gas guzzler then max as determined by Corp).

And forget the poor having internet access. They cant afford the porn and IPADS that you can (as determined by Corp)!

Dump the republiCONS before they sell the whole country down the drain .... all the while chasing their profit (as determined by Corp)

[rightbehind]

This court is legislating from the bench. It has always been the job of the FCC to control these things.

[rightbehind]

Call your representatives. Stop the corporations from taking your access to the Internet. You want free speech you better start here. This is the future of it. If you let the corporations control it you will have lost your ability to free speech. Freedom is not being forced to line a ceo pocket.