The Federal Communications Commission voted to reinstate net neutrality rules on Thursday, returning to the Obama-era approach of establishing a level playing field for online platforms, regardless of size. The commissioners voted 3-2 along party lines to reclassify broadband as a Title II telecommunications service, the equivalent of a public utility, which means it can be regulated like power and water. However, the FCC qualified that while it would be treating the Internet as an essential service, it will exercise its authority “in a narrowly tailored fashion.”

The overall goals include “protect[ing] the open Internet” by returning to rules that prohibit practices like throttling, which prioritize favored platforms, often by self-dealing, the FCC explains in a press release. The rules give the FCC “the ability to revoke the authorizations of foreign-owned entities who pose a threat to national security to operate broadband networks in the U.S.”

The FCC “previously exercised this authority under section 214 of the Communications Act to revoke the operating authorities of four Chinese state-owned carriers to provide voice services in the U.S. Any provider without section 214 authorization for voice services must now also cease any fixed or mobile broadband service operations in the United States.”

The Commission also plans to play an “active role” in monitoring Internet service outages that could prevent workers from telecommuting, students from studying, or curb business marketing. “In our post-pandemic world, we know that broadband is a necessity, not a luxury,” Politico reports FCC Chair Jessica Rosenworcel saying prior to the vote.

The net neutrality rules were initially established in 2015 under the Obama administration. “Aimed at preventing Internet service providers like Verizon or Comcast from blocking or degrading the delivery of services from competitors like Netflix and YouTube,” the regulations were repealed in 2017 during the Trump administration, and have since “proved to be a contentious partisan issue over the years while pitting tech giants against broadband providers,” The New York Times reports.

The Verge delves into “how we got here,” noting that while in the ensuing years net neutrality “remained a goal for many progressives, who see it as table stakes for an open Internet,” it is “no longer the biggest tech policy issue on many Americans’ minds” in light of a potential TikTok ban.

Internet service providers are likely to challenge new net neutrality rules in court, “meaning it could be months before they go into effect,” notes The Wall Street Journal in an article about what the return to net neutrality means for the Internet.

Related:
Internet Service Providers Plan to Subvert Net Neutrality. Don’t Let Them, EFF, 4/19/24
Net Neutrality Is Still a Bad Idea, National Review, 4/24/24
Net Neutrality Faces a Stiff Judicial Test, The Wall Street Journal, 4/25/24
Net Neutrality Returns to a Very Different Internet, Wired, 4/25/24
After a Years-Long Pause, the FCC Resurrects Net Neutrality, a Boon for Consumers, Los Angeles Times, 4/26/24