Court Rules Against F.C.C. in 'Net Neutrality' Case
This is a serious set back for advocates of a completely open network. The success of the global internet as a force for positive change in the world, is severely impacted by this ruling. We can compare this decision to the recent actions by the Chinese government to control what flows over the internet in China. Political and economic progress demands an open and free public internet; carriers and governments that choose to close them selves off from the inevitability of this open network, will hurt themselves and the cause of progress. It looks like we will need some legislation on this front.
A federal appeals court has ruled that the Federal Communications Commission lacks the authority to require broadband providers to give equal treatment to all Internet traffic flowing over their networks. Tuesday's ruling by the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia is a big victory for the Comcast Corporation, the nation's largest cable company. It had challenged the FCC's authority to impose so called "net neutrality" obligations.
