Juliette Garside
Guardian
Oct 2, 2011
The largest US mobile phone company has began legal action against new government regulations that protect the free flow of internet traffic in the latest twist on the “net neutrality” debate.
Verizon Communications is taking the action following the publication last week of new Federal Communications Commission rules barring fixed-line broadband companies from prioritising or blocking any legal content on their networks.
Some companies would like to charge content producers in exchange for delivering their material, such as movies, to consumers faster than other non-paying internet traffic.
The rules, which come into effect in two months, are more lenient on mobile networks. Phone companies are only barred from blocking voice and other applications that compete with their own services, but are allowed to manage all other traffic so that their systems are not overwhelmed.
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