Comptel Backs FCC in Title II Fight

Comptel, which represents competitive communications carriers -- Internet service providers, backbone providers and others -- is putting its legal money where its mouth is, asking a DC federal court for permission to weigh in on the Federal Communications Commission's behalf in the legal challenges to the Title II reclassification order. Comptel on May 12 filed a petition to intervene with the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia which, barring some last-minute legal maneuvering, will be hearing the appeals by cable and telecommunications company associations and others.

Comptel, which supported reclassifying ISPs as telecoms under the Title II common carrier regulations, told the court that the rules "will ensure that consumers and businesses can access a competitive network of online content, applications, and services." The rules, which passed on a pure party line vote Feb. 26, are scheduled to go into effect June 12, unless the court grants stays being prepared by cable and telecommunication company operators and likely to be filed by week's end. The FCC denied stay requests from the same folks, prompting the next step of seeking the court stay.