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When Hulu launched, it was set up as the perfect online distributor for network TV, which was completely ad-supported. But since then, broadcast networks have fought for and won retransmission fees from cable operators, making their model a lot more like cable. The TV business is only 50% ad supported, with $68 billion coming from advertising. When you tally up TV subscriber fees collected by cable, satellite and telcos, it comes to, well, about $68 billion. And the reality is, between cable, satellite and telecom TV offerings, 90% of Americans pay for their TV.

Under the FCC's proposed net neutrality rules, broadband providers would be prohibited from discriminating against any legal Web content and applications. Some net neutrality opponents have argued that the FCC, by forcing them to carry other content, would violate their free-speech rights, and the Citizens United ruling makes that a stronger argument.

An FCC spokeswoman declined to comment on the Citizens United case, but Wendy is not alone in making this free-speech argument against net neutrality. Even before the Citizens United ruling, some conservative think tanks, the National Cable and Telecommunications Association and constitutional law professor Laurence Tribe have made similar

Free Press' Wright said those arguments confuse the role that ISPs have as Web site publishers with their role as network operators. She acknowledged that broadband providers have limited functions, such as publishing their own Web sites or blogs, that enjoy free-speech rights.