Cecilia Kang | Washington | August 6

WaPo - The Federal Communications Commission on Thursday called off its closed-door meetings with big Internet companies aimed at reaching agreement on protecting consumer access to the Web, after drawing criticism for attempting to broker a deal with limited public input.

The breakdown of the talks followed news of a separate agreement between Verizon and Google that would let Verizon give priority to certain Web content on its fixed-line networks. The deal between the two companies -- which are partners in the Android wireless phone platform -- does not apply to Verizon's mobile networks.

Insiders lamented the end of the agency-led talks, saying that there had been progress among FCC officials and representatives of AT&T, Verizon, Skype, Google, a cable trade association and a coalition for firms such as Amazon and public-interest groups. The parties had been working out agreements on network neutrality, which would prohibit Internet service providers from dictating what subscribers are able to access on the Web.

Participants in the FCC's talks had discussed tighter boundaries for managing Web traffic than those agreed upon by Verizon and Google, according to sources familiar with the meetings. The sources spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the matter on the record.