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Washington state passes net neutrality

Governor signs bipartisan legislation seeking to restore measures recently scrapped by FCC decision

The fight over net neutrality in the US is not yet over.

As reported by Time, Governor Jay Inslee of Washington has signed into law a bipartisan bill forbidding internet service providers from manipulating speed and access to content.

In December, the Federal Communications Commission overturned a 2015 FCC rule prohibiting ISPs from blocking, throttling or prioritizing Internet traffic.

The FCC also prohibited individual states from passing their own laws contradicting its ruling, which leaves Washington's new measure a likely target for lawsuits.

Inslee acknowledged that the new law could precipitate a court battle, but said states have every right to protect their citizens.

"We know that when D.C. fails to act, Washington state has to do so," Inslee said. "We know how important this is."

Washington's net neutrality law is scheduled to go into effect June 6.

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Brendan Sinclair

Managing Editor

Brendan joined GamesIndustry.biz in 2012. Based in Toronto, Ontario, he was previously senior news editor at GameSpot in the US.