Wireless industry group says rules violate U.S. Constitution

The California-based Wireless Internet Service Providers Association announced Tuesday it is taking the Federal Communications Commission to court on new net neutrality rules, making the group the fifth to sue the commission on the issue.

WISPA's lawsuit, filed in D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals, challenges the FCC decision on the grounds that "the rules are arbitrary and capricious, an abuse of discretion and in excess of the FCC's statutory authority, and therefore should be declared unlawful."

FCC voted in February to approve new rules that could ultimately prevent Internet providers charging content providers extra to ensure customers have faster access to their data. President Barack Obama and many Internet-based businesses support the new rules, but Internet providers contend they represent a heavy-handed government intrusion into the free market.

"We believe the FCC's decision improperly imposes a multitude of new regulatory requirements without the legal authority to do so," WISPA President Chuck Hogg said. "This in effect, reverses decades of FCC decisions that enabled competition and undermines the Government's goal of Internet access to unserved areas."

The four other associations suing FCC are U.S. Telecom Association, CTIA-The Wireless Association, American Cable Association and National Cable and Telecommunications Association. In addition, the FCC is being sued by AT&T and Texas-based provider Alamo Broadband. http://bit.ly/1FxISaS

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