Comcast’s FCC ‘net neutrality’ case is gaining momentum

There’s been a lot of talk lately about the Federal Communications Commission’s newly proposed broadband regulations. But one small issue seems to have been overlooked in the hubbub: ongoing litigation between Comcast (CMCSA), the nation’s largest cable company, and the FCC over the commission’s decision last year to sanction the cable giant for violating net neutrality. The principle is that broadband companies should not block any content on their networks in favor of their own offerings.

But attention returned to the issue on Monday when several net neutrality groups and academics filed amicus briefs supporting the FCC’s ruling that Comcast violated net neutrality by disrupting Bit Torrent file-sharing traffic on its network. Bit Torrent, of course, is a peer-to-peer file-sharing service that allows users to exchange files – including MP3 songs – much to the annoyance of the recording industry. Comcast filed an appeal last year, arguing that the commission lacked the authority to enforce federal policy.