In a speech Wednesday at Stanford Law School, Federal Communications Commissioner Michael Copps told participants that it’s his job to protect the public’s interest in communications policy. The speech was part of the “Openness and Innovation in the Digital World” seminar.

Copps, who has long been a strong advocate for Internet users, highlighted the need for FCC action to restore authority over broadband, and urged everyone to get involved to ensure the FCC has the authority to implement key pieces of its agenda, especially the National Broadband Plan.

“America’s future town square will be paved with broadband bricks. It must be accessible to all—not the province of powerful gatekeepers, tollbooths and walled gardens,” Copps said. “It must reflect the diverse voices of this diverse land.”

He also made references to past FCC decisions that have left the current Commission on precarious regulatory footing, and reiterated the implications of the Bush-era FCC’s decision to classify broadband transmission under Title I of the Communications Act. He said:

Over much of the past decade, the FCC took American consumers on a costly and damaging ride, moving the broadband transmission component of Internet access services provided by dominant telephone and cable companies outside of the statutory Title II framework that applies to telecommunications carriers. This was a major flip-flop from the historic—and successful—approach of requiring nondiscrimination in our communications networks.

Copps went on to warn that special interests groups and Internet service providers want to act as gatekeepers and control the Internet users’ online experience.

To read Copps’ full remarks, go to: http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DOC-298708A1.pdf.