Net neutrality faces uncertain U.S. court ruling

The U.S. Federal Communications Commission's net neutrality regulations, also known as open Internet rules, face a hearing on Monday in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.

Adopted by a divided FCC in December 2010, the neutrality rules prohibit ISPs on wired networks from blocking legal sites and services, imposing extra charges to deliver a website's data to subscribers or "unreasonably" prioritizing some types of traffic over others. That sort of hands-off treatment has been a standard practice among ISPs since the first data were transmitted.

Verizon argues that the FCC doesn't have authority to regulate an information service, a class of communications that the agency has previously exempted from most regulation. The net neutrality rules are a violation of Verizon’s First Amendment free speech rights and its Fifth Amendment property rights, the company has argued.

"Even if the court finds that the FCC possesses authority under the statute, there is a pretty good chance the court will find, in light of the lack of persuasive findings concerning market failure, consumer harm, or impact on investment and innovation, that the agency's decision is arbitrary and capricious," Randolph May, president of the Free State Foundation said.

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