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Net neutrality falls in court ruling that could impact broader big tech regulation

A federal appeals court decided that the FCC can't force ISPs to follow net neutrality rules.

Additionally, there was the thought that executive branch agencies were best fit to make major policy decisions because they could be held accountable by voters — we saw this in practice as net neutrality tumbled through the Obama, Trump, and Biden administrations. "We acknowledge that the workings of the Internet are complicated and dynamic, and that the FCC has significant expertise in overseeing ‘this technical and complex area," they continue, adding that the agency's interpretation "cannot be used to overwrite the plain meaning of the statute." If executive branch agencies — such as the FCC or the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) or the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), can't reign in tech companies without explicit laws giving them the authority to do so — progress may stall.

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