The Federal Communications Commission released a plan on Tuesday that would roll back net neutrality, a move that will be welcomed by some telecom giants and internet service providers (ISPs), but which could cause serious problems for the online gambling community.

The current net neutrality rules, which were put into place by the Obama administration, prohibit ISPs from giving priority to some websites or activities over others, or from blocking access to specific sites due to their content or source. Essentially, the rules dictate that the internet be treated as a public utility, with all the corresponding consumer protections.

But current FCC chairman Ajit Pai plans on rolling back these rules as part of his deregulation agenda. It is widely expected that his plan will be approved during a Dec. 14 meeting of the commission, where Pai and the two other Republicans on the FCC will presumably vote in favor of the proposal, with the two Democrats on the commission opposing the move.

Pai defended his proposal, saying that deregulation would be beneficial for the economy.

“What we wanted to do is return to the free market consensus that started in the Clinton administration and that served the internet economy in America very well for many years,” he told Fox & Friends.

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