FCC boss stumps for free and open internet Comcast begs to differ - in court By Rik Myslewski in San Francisco
CES 2010 On Friday morning, Comcast asked a US court to strike down a
2008 Federal Communications Commission order to stop blocking subscribers' heavy use of its services, saying that the FCC had exceeded its authority. On Friday afternoon, during a casual interview at the Consumer Electronics Show, the response from the FCC chairman was: "No comment, but..."
Chairman Julius Genachowski seized the opportunity to reiterate the FCC's net-neutrality goals and reasoning to his interlocuter, Consumer Electronics Association president and CEO Gary Shapiro.
When Shapiro asked him his opinion of Comcast's argument that the FCC didn't have authority to dictate to them how to run their business - "There was simply no federal law to interpret, enforce, or apply against Comcast," were Comcast's words - Genachowski danced away from the question. "The litigation underscores for me the importance of developing sensible rules of the road around a free and open internet that people understand," he said, adding that "we'll obviously watch what happens with the court and act accordingly."
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