Here's Big Cable's plan to stop the FCC's net neutrality rules

Industry groups representing almost every type of Internet service provider have filed lawsuits arguing that the Federal Communications Commission's new regulations are illegal. If these lawsuits succeed, they could strip the FCC of legal authority to establish strong net neutrality protections. The groups won't be required to spell out their legal arguments until later in the legal process. But I talked to two industry insiders -- including Michael Powell, who represents the cable industry as the head of the National Cable and Telecommunications Association -- to get a preview of the industry's arguments.

The lawsuits will include a direct attack on the legal foundations of the FCC order: the decision to regulate internet access like a public utility. That was an essential precondition for enacting tough network neutrality rules. And industry groups say it goes beyond the authority Congress provided to the FCC. But the telecommunications industry may have a difficult time convincing the courts on this issue. A landmark 2005 Supreme Court decision stressed that the FCC has considerable flexibility to decide how to regulate Internet access. Network neutrality supporters say that ruling gives the FCC clear legal authority for the rules the agency established in February. Either way, this is a fight that's going to continue for years to come.