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FCC going forward with broadband plan despite 'net neutrality' ruling

By Bernard Hibbitts (editor) and University of Pittsburgh School of Law students.

[JURIST] Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chairman Julius Genachowski testified Wednesday before the Senate Commerce Committee that the agency will move ahead with its National Broadband Plan despite a recent court ruling that it lacks the power to enforce net neutrality. Net neutrality, which is unanimously supported by the FCC's commissioners, was thought essential to the goal of an open flow of information over the Internet regardless of the amount of revenue generated by the information. Genachowski said that the FCC's actions, as laid out in the 2010 Broadband Action Agenda will, "protect America's global competitiveness and help deliver the extraordinary benefits of broadband to all Americans." The roadmap, he continued, falls within the framework of the Communications Act of 1934 as amended in 1996 and will be, "rooted in a sound legal foundation, designed to promote investment, innovation, competition, and consumer interests." The FCC announced last week that it would move forward with the plan despite the ruling. The FCC sent the plan to Congress for approval last month, seeking approval to enact regulations to update the communications infrastructure in the US and make broadband service available to millions more Americans. Telecommunications companies Verizon, AT&T and Comcast argue that net neutrality would inhibit their ability to effectively manage Internet traffic. Under the National Broadband plan, the FCC hopes to provide broadband access as broadly as possible, including to at least one public institution in every community and to first responders. Other notable goals of the plan include providing 100 million households with affordable 100 megabits-per-second internet service and ensuring that all children are literate in digital technology by the time they leave high school.

Full post as published by JURIST - The Paper Chase on April 15, 2010 (boomark / email).