CTIA-The Wireless Association, which represents the U.S. wireless communications industry, filed a lawsuit with the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals today challenging the FCC’s Open Internet decision to impose new net neutrality rules and reclassify mobile broadband as a common carrier utility.
CTIA President and CEO Meredith Attwell Baker stated: “CTIA and the wireless industry have always supported an open Internet, which is why these rules will only chill investment and innovation and increase costs for consumers. The FCC ignored that the competitive, constantly innovating mobile broadband industry provides Americans with faster networks and a wide variety of devices and service plans. Instead of promoting greater industry investment in the connected world of tomorrow, the FCC opted to resuscitate a command-and-control regulatory regime, including a process where innovators must first seek permission from the FCC before rolling out new services. In so doing, the FCC usurped the role of Congress and departed from a bipartisan mobile-specific framework to create a new intrusive regulatory framework. CTIA had no choice but to seek judicial review to preserve the regulatory approach that has been instrumental in helping the U.S. become the global leader in 4G services. We are confident that the courts will reject the FCC’s overreach for the third time, particularly with respect to mobile broadband services.”
