The Court of Appeals for the DC circuit released their decision on the Comcast, where the FCC’s authority to regulate traffic management techniques was challenged.  The court sided with Comcast 3-0, finding no basis for ancillary authority that the FCC claimed.  This decision was probably not a surprise to many – the FCC’s ancillary justification in Comcast was always a stretch. Here is the full decision.

This decision does not remove all methods of justifying ancillary authority, only the Title I authority the FCC had relied on.

So where does the FCC go from here? Search for another source of ancillary authority? Try and categorize broadband providers as Title II common carriers? Head to the Hill to get statutory authority to regulate the Internet?

The FCC has released a statement on the decision, which certainly indicates their commitment to continuing on a course of involvement in the Internet and their open access initiatives.

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