AT&T calls FCC’s $100 million fine ‘unprecedented and indefensible’

When the Federal Communications Commission hit it with a massive $100 million fine in June for throttling customer data, AT&T promised to “vigorously dispute” it.

Now, the telecommunications giant is doing just that. In its official response [PDF] to the commission’s order, AT&T calls the fine “unprecedented and indefensible,” yet AT&T isn’t completely denying that it did reduce data speeds after customers who supposedly had “unlimited” data plans hit usage caps.

“It would impose massive forfeiture penalties on AT&T for practices that were repeatedly endorsed by the Commission,” AT&T’s statement says of the order. “AT&T’s competitors, who employed the same congestion management practices and disclosed less, have not been subjected to any similar enforcement action.”

The statement goes on to say the amount of $100 million is “plucked out of thin air” and that the commission is going beyond its authority.