USTelecom and others filed a petition today asking the U.S. Court of Appeals to stay the FCC’s open internet order.
The group, which includes USTelecom, AT&T, CTIA, ATA, WISPA, CenturyLink, and NSTA, filed a petition directly with the FCC last week seeking a stay of the rules. The FCC denied their request. At the moment, the open internet rules are scheduled to go into effect on June 12. USTelecom and its co-signees want the court to prevent the FCC from enacting the rules in order to “maintain the status quo” while the organizations fight the rules in court.
“We are seeking to stay this ill-conceived order’s reclassification of broadband service as a public utility service,” said USTelecom President Walter McCormick. “This reclassification does not serve the public interest, but unlawfully paves the way toward expansive government management of the Internet. Once implemented, the order will result in huge burdens on companies of all sizes, and create an open season of regulation and litigation that imposes immediate and unrecoverable costs.”
USTelecom and its partners request the U.S. Court of Appeals rule on the matter no later than June 11, one day before the rules take effect.
