Broadband supplier Verizon Communications has filed a suit take exception the U.S. Federal Communications Commission ’s authority to implement net neutrality rules .
Verizon filed the lawsuit Thursday in Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit , the company said . The FCC voted Dec. 21 to veto broadband providers from selectively barricade or slowing Web content and applications .
Court challenges to the FCC ’s vote were wide expected .
Verizon is committed to preserve an exposed Internet , Michael Glover , Verizon ’s senior vice Chief Executive and deputy ecumenical counsel , say in a statement . But the lawsuit come after a “ careful follow-up ” of the FCC order , he said .
“ We are profoundly concerned by the FCC ’s assertion of broad federal agency for sweep newfangled regulation of broadband networks and the net itself , ” he added . “ We consider this assertion of authority goes well beyond any self-assurance provided by Congress , and create uncertainty for the communication theory diligence , innovators , investor and consumers . ”
An FCC spokesman declined to comment on the Verizon lawsuit .
In addition to exceeding its statutory authorization , the FCC play in an arbitrary and capricious manner in approving the formula , Verizon ’s lawyers write in their five - Thomas Nelson Page court document file Thursday . The FCC ’s rules are also “ wayward to constitutional right wing , ” Verizon read .
Verizon also argued that its mobile spectrum licenses were unlawfully modify by the FCC in the final neutrality order , suggesting that the fellowship will concentrate on the FCC ’s modest final neutrality rules for mobile broadband carriers . The FCC ’s formula put stronger net disinterest rule on wireline broadband armed service than on wandering service .
angel of stiff nett neutrality rules said they were n’t surprised by the challenge .
“ Verizon ’s decision present that even the most light and water - down rules are n’t enough to conciliate elephantine phone companies , ” said Aparna Sridhar , policy guidance at Free Press , a medium reform group that has criticize the FCC ’s actions as too weak . “ It ’s ironic that Verizon is unhappy with rules that were written to gentle it , and it ’s now clear that it will nail down for nothing less than total deregulating and a toothless FCC in the relentless spare-time activity of profit . ”
In the volume of the document Verizon filed Thursday , the troupe fence that the D.C. Circuit court of appeal has undivided legal power over challenges to the net neutrality rules because the FCC modified its peregrine license . In early 2010 , that same courtthrew out an FCC attempt to enforce informal net disinterest principlesin a case affect Comcast trammel peer - to - match traffic .
That ’s a “ very bizarre possibility ” about jurisdiction , aver Andrew Jay Schwartzman , fourth-year frailty chairwoman and policy director at the Media Access Project , a digital rights group support firm net neutrality rule .
“ This is a blatant effort to locate their challenge in a favorable meeting place , ” he said . “ Under Verizon ’s bizarre hypothesis , all agency actions changing rules are modifications of hundreds of thousands of license . ”
