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Internet regulation endorsed by the Obama administration would hinder innovation and increase costs for consumers, an FCC commissioner said on Thursday. "I'm opposed to President
Obama's plan for Internet regulation precisely because it is going to make for slower broadband for Americans, will increase their Internet bills and ultimately will reduce competition
and innovation in the broadband marketplace," Commissioner Ajit Pai told CNBC's "Squawk Alley." Ajit Pai, Federal Communications Commission Andrew Harrer | Bloomberg |
Getty Images Federal Communications Commission Chairman Tom Wheeler on Wednesday proposed a net neutrality policy that would reclassify broadband as a public utility. Obama has championed
the rules, which would stop cable companies from restricting access to certain data and prioritizing content based on payment. Read MoreFCC boss plans sweeping new net neutrality rules The
rules would fall under Title II regulation, which Pai argued was made to protect against monopolies. The FCC's five commissioners will vote on the proposal in the next few weeks. Pai
believes politics have pressured the agency into addressing a "problem that doesn't exist." He called the proposed regulation "heavy handed," adding that it would
add barriers for Internet entrepreneurs. Read MoreFCC changes broadband definition to 25 Mbps However, the wireless industry, which has been governed under Title II rules for more than 20
years, has supported an investment and competition, an FCC spokesman told CNBC. He added that cable stocks moved broadly higher on Wednesday, showing a positive reaction to the
proposal's effect on business. _(Disclosure: CNBC is a unit of NBC Universal, whose parent company is Comcast Corp)_