Common Cause Hails Appeals Court Decision on Open Internet

'Spectacular Victory for Free Speech and Innovation'

Statement by Common Cause President Karen Hobert Flynn

The internet has become our nation’s public square and with today’s ruling the court has affirmed that it must be open to everyone. That is particularly important in this election year. Every American has a right to know who is behind all the political money trying to influence our government, and a right to access alternative forms of media to make informed votes. In upholding the FCC’s “open internet” rules, the judges have ensured that the Internet Service Providers we rely on to deliver broadband to our homes and business cannot play gatekeeper by blocking access or establishing fast and slow lanes for the flow of information.

 

Statement by Michael Copps, former FCC commissioner, now special advisor to Common Cause on media and democracy reform

I’m a happy man today. This is a spectacular victory for online free speech and innovation. The judges’ unambiguous holding that the FCC has clear authority to reclassify broadband as a telecommunications service should end legal challenges to the open internet. The big cable and telecom companies and other opponents of the FCC’s rules should end their multimillion dollar investment in litigation and lobbying and focus on providing fast, reliable service. A serious wrong has been righted.  For once, justice delayed wasn’t justice denied. There are still huge battles to win–over big company consolidation, hyper-commercialization, content monopolized by a few, and making the internet a real town-square of democracy.  But with net neutrality upheld, we can get on with the rest of the job.