On Thursday, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is expected to establish landmark net neutrality rules on Internet service providers (ISP).
The new rule would reclassify ISP from “information service” to “telecommunication service,” thereby granting the FCC broad authority over a range of business practices by broadband companies, including a stringent enforcement of net neutrality.
The FCC’s decision doesn’t make net neutrality the law of the land yet. Cable lobbyists said they will likely challenge the change in the courts. The last time the FCC tried to introduce net neutrality rules via a different legal pathway, it was successfully challenged by Verizon, which won its lawsuit in the Supreme Court in 2014.
What Is Net Neutrality?
The core idea behind net neutrality is that of an Internet where service providers, such as Comcast or AT&T, cannot discriminate against content providers, such as Netflix, by charging websites for different speed levels, also known as “paid prioritization.” It would also prevent ISP from throttling broadband-heavy websites such as video-streaming services.
