Brand X Reportage


Legal Times:  In Broadband Case, Justices Seem Attuned to Internet Services’ Arguments: “In a high-stakes dispute over the regulation of Internet access, the Supreme Court struggled Tuesday over how much deference it should give to a 2002 Federal Communications Commission decision freeing cable modem providers from the rules that govern telephone companies.”
Washington Post: FCC Ruling Limits Competition, ISP Tells Justices: “A Bush administration lawyer urged the Supreme Court to accept a 2002 Federal Communications Commission ruling that gave cable companies the right to bar rival Internet service providers from their lines, as the justices heard oral arguments yesterday in a case that could determine what choices are available to broadband subscribers.”
Wired News: Will Cable Quell the Competition? “After listening to oral arguments in the controversial Grokster case Tuesday, the U.S. Supreme Court stayed firmly in tech territory as it considered whether cable operators should be forced to open up their broadband data pipes to competition.”
AP: Justices Question Control of Cable Firms: “The Supreme Court on Tuesday questioned the tight control cable companies hold over high-speed Internet service in a case that will determine whether the industry must open up its lines to competitors.”
The Industry Standard: Supreme Court asks why cable broadband lacks regulation: “During oral arguments, Supreme Court justices questioned how cable modem service providers can argue that broadband access and Internet functionality are an inseparable service when the FCC has required large incumbent telecom carriers to sell access to their broadband networks to competing Internet service providers (ISPs).”

Andrew Raff @andrewraff