Network Neutrality

NCTA: The Internet & Television Association says the Federal Trade Commission needs to take a light-touch approach to regulating the wildly competitive communications marketplace, but apply that touch to everyone in the space.

Attorneys general representing 22 states and the District of Columbia asked a federal court to reinstate network neutrality, saying the Federal Communications Commission failed to properly consider the issues when removing the policy in 2017. In a brief filed Aug 20, the attorneys general argue that the FCC’s decision “will cause [inevitable harms] to consumers, public safety, and existing regulatory schemes” and that the commission “entirely ignored many of these issues” when overturning net neutrality.

According to testimony and documents provided by the fire chief of Santa Clara County, one of the CA counties fighting the largest wildfire in the state's history, throttling of its Internet speeds per a lower-priced Verizon data plan had a significant impact the department's ability to provide emergency and potentially life-saving services. The documents came in the legal challenge to the Federal Communications Commission's lifting of regulations against online blocking, throttling and paid prioritization.

The News Media Alliance, which represents the newspaper industry, laid out a potential antitrust case against its foes, Google and Facebook, in comments filed with the Federal Trade Commission. The organization outlined legal considerations — including non-price harm to consumers, such as the newspaper industry’s ability to sustain journalism — and explained “how they connect to a potential antitrust case against one or more platforms.” 

Public Knowledge, Mozilla, the Benton Foundation, INCOMPAS and others challenging the Federal Communications Commission's Restoring Internet Freedom order say that was not just bad policy but illegal. That is coming in a brief with the US Court of Appeals for the DC Circuit, which is hearing their challenge to the network neutrality regulation rollback--the deadline for initial briefs from non-government parties is Aug 20.

In Sept, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) will kick off its planned Hearings on Competition and Consumer Protection in the 21st Century.  The timing is auspicious.  Now that the FTC once again oversees the entire internet ecosystem, including broadband internet service providers (ISPs), it should pursue two overarching objectives.

An exacting look at Judge Brett Kavanaugh's judicial record is crucial to understand where he stands on issues of critical importance to the American people. In one such case, United States Telecom Association. v. FCC, the DC Circuit Court of Appeals was called upon to review the constitutionality of the Federal Communications Commission’s net neutrality regulations from 2015.

After months of relative inactivity, there will soon be some important movement in litigation over the Federal Communications Commission’s network neutrality rules. The fact that there are two different cases in two different courts litigating over two different decisions is likely to cause considerable confusion in the coming weeks. On Monday, August 20, challengers will be filing their initial briefs in their appeal of the Trump Administration FCC’s oxymoronic “Restoring Internet Freedom” order.

National advocacy groups including the ACLU, CREDO Action, Demand Progress, Fight for the Future and Free Press Action Fund are sending a questionnaire to 38 members of Congress — and those challenging them in the upcoming midterm elections — about the vote to restore net neutrality via the Congressional Review Act in the House, which needs a simple majority to pass. For incumbents: “Have you signed, or do you firmly commit within the next 30 calendar days to sign, the discharge petition for the House net neutrality CRA, and will you vote in favor of the net neutrality CRA if it comes up fo

The candidates running to become New York’s next attorney general each sought to assure a tech-friendly audience that they would be defenders of network neutrality and entrepreneurship during a candidate forum on Aug 14. Rep Sean Patrick Maloney (D-NY), Public Advocate Tish James, Zephyr Teachout and Leecia Eve — all running to secure the Democratic nomination in September’s primary election — made their pitches to protect industry actors while at the same time presenting themselves as bulwarks against the presidency of Donald Trump.