Verizon, a long time opponent of net neutrality, filed an appeal Friday in federal court challenging the Federal Communications Commission’s recent adoption of open Internet rules. The FCC formally entered those rules into the Federal Register last week.
The communications giant, which filed a similar suit against the FCC in April, seeks to overturn the panel’s 3–2 decision in November 2010 to adopt network neutrality principles in the interest of protecting consumers. (RELATED: Liberal group challenges FCC net neutrality ruling)
Calling the regulation of network providers “contrary to constitutional right … [and] contrary to law,” Verizon claims the FCC stepped exceeded its statutory authority — and that the rule is “arbitrary, capricious and an abuse of discretion” which must be corrected through judicial review.
Verizon is one of the many communications companies expected to challenge the net neutrality law on the basis that it constitutes unwarranted regulation of the wireless industry.
The media advocacy group Free Press filed a similar suit challenging the order earlier in the week, but for the opposite reasons: Asking for a review rather than an appeal, Free Press claims the FCC did not do enough to protect consumers from being arbitrarily “choked” from data.
Asked for comment, an FCC spokesman stood by the Open Internet Framework, saying that the government body “will vigorously oppose any effort to disrupt or unsettle that certainty, which ensures that the Internet remains an engine for job creation, innovation and economic growth.”