Federal officials sue California against several hours of network neutrality law

SACRAMENTO – California governor Jerry Brown on Sunday signed the country's strictest net neutrality measure, requiring Internet service providers to make the rules of the game the same for everyone online. The move provoked an immediate trial by the Trump administration.

Proponents of Internet neutrality hope that the law, at the base of the global technology industry, will have national implications by pushing Congress to adopt national rules of internet neutrality or encouraging other states to do the same.

But the US Justice Department wants to silence the law, arguing that it creates heavy consumer demands that run counter to the federal government's approach to deregulating the Internet.

"Once again, the California legislature has enacted an illegal state law aimed at thwarting federal policy," said Attorney General Jeff Sessions in a statement.

The law is the latest example of the country's most populous state seeking to enforce public order beyond its borders and to scape the agenda of President Trump.

Brown did not explain why he had signed the bill at the announcement of the decision, but his supporters hailed it as a victory for the freedom of the government. Internet.

"It's a historic day for California. The free and open internet is the cornerstone of 21st century life – our democracy, our economy, our health and public safety systems, and our day-to-day activities, "said Senator Scott Wiener, author of the law.

Last year, the Federal Communications Commission repealed the rules that prevent Internet companies from exercising greater control over what people watch and see on the Internet.

Telecommunications companies have made great efforts to kill or dilute it, saying it would increase Internet and mobile phone bills and discourage investment in a faster Internet. According to them, it is unrealistic to expect them to comply with Internet regulations that differ from state to state.

USTelecom, a professional group in the telecommunications industry, said that California's own rules would create problems.

"Instead of 50 states intervening with their own conflicting open Internet solutions, we need the Congress to propose a national framework for the entire ecosystem of the Internet and solve that problem once for all, "said the group in a statement released Sunday.

Proponents of Internet neutrality fear that, without rules, Internet service providers may create fast lanes and slow lanes favoring their own sites and applications or making it harder for consumers to see the Internet. content of their competitors.

This could limit consumer choice or rule out ready-to-go businesses that can not afford to buy access to the fast lane, critics say.

The law prohibits Internet service providers from blocking or slowing down content-based data or favoring websites or business video streams that pay extra.

It also prohibits "zero rating" in which Internet service providers do not count certain content against a monthly data limit – usually video streams produced by subsidiaries and partners of the company.

Oregon, Washington, and Vermont have approved network neutrality legislation, but California's measure is seen as the most comprehensive attempt to codify the principle in a manner likely to withstand a likely court challenge. An identical bill was introduced in New York.