Kennard: FCC on Shaky Ground in Comcast Decision

Former Federal Communications Commission Chairman and current Obama advisor William Kennard will appear Saturday on C-SPAN's The Communications. He said, speaking as a former FCC general counsel, that if Comcast wants to take the Commission to court over its decision to find the company in violation of its Internet open-access guidelines, it has a "compelling case." While the FCC has said that it has authority to enforce the guidelines, Kennard said that assertion does not necessarily make it so. He said the FCC's jurisdictional basis for the decision is "murky," which is why he, and Sen Obama, favor legislation mandating network neutrality. "Legislation would make it clear to not only network carriers but also the public that network neutrality is enshrined in law, that the FCC has jurisdiction and that it is not going to be subject to years of litigation," he added.