Net neutrality will be a focus of the...
Net neutrality will be a focus of the FCC May 15 meeting, Chairman Tom Wheeler confirmed Wednesday. As expected (CD April 23 p4), Wheeler plans to circulate a NPRM on the issue Thursday, he told reporters in a Q&A session…
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after Wednesday’s commission open meeting. (See separate reports above in this issue.) The net neutrality redux comes three months after the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit threw out the agency’s 2010 rules, finding them too close to prohibited common-carriage requirements. The NPRM will be consistent with the framework Wheeler laid out in February, an FCC official said, following the “blueprint” of the court opinion. Wheeler said then (CD Feb 20 p1) that he intended to enhance the transparency rule, and ensure ISPs don’t unfairly block or discriminate against Web services. Consideration of using Title II authority remains on the table, Wheeler said then. The D.C. Circuit decision gave the agency broad authority to regulate under Communications Act Section 706, and Wheeler has frequently indicated he would accept the court’s “invitation” to regulate.