Verizon, AT&T take net neutrality battle to US court

The battle for net neutrality, currently exercising the Indian government, is reaching epic proportions globally. On Monday, the United States Telecom Association, an industry group that represents companies including AT&T and Verizon, said it has filed a suit against the Federal Communications Commission's new internet traffic rules.

The rules, which uphold the principle of "net neutrality," were published Monday in the government's Federal Register. They will go into effect 12 June if a court doesn't block them.

The suit argues that the rules are arbitrary and violate federal law. It also says the FCC didn't follow the proper procedure for creating them.

Experts say litigation could drag on for years.

The rules, voted on in February, say no content may be allowed to load more quickly online than other content. They forbid the "fast lanes" that some content providers would be willing to pay for, and they say broadband providers can't slow Web traffic or block content.

The FCC put those rules in place by treating Internet access as a telecommunications service, like the telephone is.

Some broadband providers don't like the stricter oversight that comes with that.

Under the rules, for instance, the FCC will be able to investigate allegations by consumers and Internet companies such as Netflix about "unjust or unreasonable" behavior by broadband providers like Comcast, Verizon or AT&T.

Internet service providers say they are worried that aspects of the new rules are unclear, such as what practices the FCC would deem unfair. An AT&T executive has said that the FCC's new rules mean "a period of uncertainty that will damage broadband investment in the United States."