In the aftermath of the April 2010 ruling by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit in Comcast v. FCC, the Federal Communications Commission is ill-equipped to achieve America’s most important broadband goals. The decision jeopardizes the FCC’s ability to implement proposals to bring broadband to all Americans, to promote competition and to preserve the open Internet. In response to Comcast, the FCC can and should classify broadband Internet connectivity service as a telecommunications service under the Communications Act. This move will restore a sound foundation for the FCC’s broadband agenda. If the Commission fails to act, it will be abandoning its duty to protect and promote the public interest jeopardizing America’s long-term global competitiveness.

Pursuing this strategy — which would permit the Commission to apply to broadband providers some but not all of the provisions contained in Title II of the Communications Act — reestablishes the FCC’s authority to move forward. The factual record and relevant legal precedent unassailably support the conclusion that the proposed policy shift is both necessary and wise. A limited Title II classification will uphold the commonly shared principles of universal service, competition, interconnection, nondiscrimination, consumer protection and reasoned deregulation — principles that created the Internet revolution.