The group of telcos challenging the Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC’s) net neutrality rules has filed a fresh petition calling on a court to partially block them.
Lobby group USTelecom said in a statement on Wednesday that the group does not seek to block the so-called ‘bright-line’ rules contained within the new law, which prevent fixed and mobile broadband providers from blocking access to legal content, applications and services, and from establishing commercial agreements with online service providers to prioritise their traffic. Rather, it wants the court to block the reclassification of broadband as a utility under Title II of the Communications Act, which would subject operators to closer scrutiny over how they manage traffic.
The group of opponents, which in addition to USTelecom includes AT&T, the National Cable and Telecommunications Association (NCTA), CTIA, the Wireless Internet Service Providers Association (WISPA), and the American Cable Association (ACA), want the court to rule on the petition by 11 June, the day before the rules are due to take effect.
"This reclassification does not serve the public interest, but unlawfully paves the way toward expansive government management of the Internet," USTelecom president Walter McCormick.
Late last week, the FCC rejected the group’s petition to stay the new rules, disputing the group’s assertion that Title II reclassification will cause irreparable harm and describing its Open Internet Order as essential to protect consumers.
"Once implemented, the order will result in huge burdens on companies of all sizes, and create an open season of regulation and litigation that imposes immediate and unrecoverable costs," insisted McCormick this week. "At a minimum, the court should grant expedited review of this case."
