After months of debating Net Neutrality and how to practically run it, the Federal Communications Commission voted to use Title II law to regulate the Internet. However, it wasn't clear to the public what that would entail. While early reports revealed that the text was 332 pages long, FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler's assistant explained that only eight pages of the 400 page document were actual rules; the rest were just responses to public comments.
Thankfully; the speculation is over. The FCC finally released the 400-page document to the public. Wheeler claims that the document is "a shining example of American democracy at work". But how helpful is it for protecting the system?
According to NPR, the document is still quite large. The original order, as presented by the FCC, is 313 pages long, followed by 87 pages of commentary from the FCC's team.
The rules are specifically designed to place a ban on an ISP's ability to use throttling, banning or paid prioritization. The bill also opens the agency up to hearing complaints about interconnect points and lets the ISPs perform reasonable network management. The only problem is that the FCC is the one who determines what is "reasonable".
It's also clear that the FCC will gain power thanks to the new bill. The New York Times reported that "with the F.C.C. set to decide on matters individually, the agency moves into a new position of prominence and a more active controlling role, one that is widely expected to be challenged in court by broadband providers like Verizon."
And Verizon is certainly looking for holes. Most ISPs have started digging through the 400-page document to find any legal weaknesses that could let them take the FCC down a notch in their upcoming lawsuit.
"Unfortunately, the order released today begins a period of uncertainty that will damage broadband investment in the United States," AT&T said in a statement released on Thursday. "Ultimately, though, we are confident the issue will be resolved by bipartisan action by Congress or a future FCC, or by the courts."
Hopefully, the four million comments that the public sent to the FCC regarding the Title II program helped them avoid any legal loopholes.
