D.C. Cir. to Comcast: “Making You Obey The Law Is Not A 'Vendetta.'”

Care of Harold Feld's Tales of the Sausage Factory.

One of the things I like about Harold Feld's writings on the FCC regulatory process is that, in addition to being relatively easily understood, it's also a fun read:

But the ultimate bitch slap to Comcast and its bully boys and useful idiots comes on page 11 n.2:

The briefs filed by Comcast, the intervenors, and the amici make assertions bordering on accusations of the Commission’s bad faith. We must presume an agency acts in good faith, Thomas v. Baker, 925 F.2d 1523, 1525 (D.C. Cir. 1991), but in any case we see no substance to these assertions. (emphasis added)

Or, to translate from the legalese: “Comcast, you and the rest of the cable industry need to get over yourselves and get a clue. The FCC requiring you to obey the law is not a ‘vendetta,’ even if previous FCC

Heh.

In this case, the Federal Court slapped down Comcast hard over its insistence that it needed an exemption from set top box interoperability rules.