Now that a month has passed since the Federal Communications Commission issued their long-awaited order on net neutrality, the lawsuits have begun. Two companies, Verizon Communications and MetroPCS, have already filed suit in federal court, arguing that the FCC lacks statutory authority to issue rules enforcing net neutrality.
Interestingly, MetroPCS is the only major wireless service provider to charge customers for different levels of bandwidth access. In particular, their $40/month plan that blocks all video streaming other than YouTube has raised eyebrows among open internet advocacy groups, who argue that the plan lacks transparency and “stifles competition, consumer choice, and innovation.”
These lawsuits do not come as a surprise to those in the industry. The FCC argues that these suits, however, are “premature” because the net neutrality order of December 21 has not even been published in the Federal Register yet. Because the net neutrality order modifies an entire class of licenses, the FCC argues that companies must wait until after publication to file appeals, and that these suits should be dismissed. Verizon promptly countered that because the issues are so important, it was obligated to play it safe by filing within 30 days of the FCC’s release of the order, rather than waiting until after publication and potentially missing the deadline.
Even if the court finds these initial suits “premature,” Verizon and other companies are expected to promptly refile after the FCC publishes the order. The FCC will be ready; in December, FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski said the agency was prepared to go to court to defend its statutory authority.
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