first published week of: 08/01/2016
ISP lobby groups petition for full court review of decision that upheld rules.
Six weeks after federal judges preserved net neutrality rules for the broadband industry, ISPs are seeking a full court review of the decision.
ISPs' attempt to overturn the Federal Communications Commission rules were rejected when a three-judge panel of the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit voted 2-1 in favor of the FCC. Now the broadband industry's trade groups are seeking an "en banc" review in front of all of the DC Circuit court's judges instead of just a three-judge panel. If this fails, ISPs can appeal to the Supreme Court, but the odds against them winning appear to be long.
One en banc petition submitted this morning before the case's deadline came from the National Cable & Telecommunications Association (NCTA) and the American Cable Association (ACA), the two biggest cable lobby groups. En banc petitions were also filed by CTIA—The Wireless Association, the mobile broadband industry's primary lobby group; the United States Telecom Association (USTelecom) and CenturyLink (representing DSL and fiber providers); and a small Texas ISP named Alamo Broadband. continued…