In a conference call Friday, leaders of nine businesses and public policy groups in the nascent It's Our Net Coalition said they weren't surprised by the House vote and will now concentrate on the Senate version of the bill.

The measure adopted by the House, known as the Communications Opportunity, Promotion, and Enhancement Act of 2006, is a broad telecommunications bill covering broadband, cable franchising, voice over IP and other Internet technologies, as well as the rules that govern them.

The issue, said Gigi Sohn, president of Public Knowledge, is that since the U.S. Federal Communications Commission and the U.S. Supreme Court ruled last year that broadband services don't fall under traditional communications regulatory policies, no one is looking out for businesses and consumers that use the Internet. Public Knowledge is a Washington-based public interest advocacy group that studies technology, copyright and broadband policy.

By ruling that broadband access shouldn't be regulated under existing laws, broadband providers have carte blanche to charge more for higher levels of service and block Web sites and content they want to block, she said.

The coalition had wanted the House to approve a specially crafted net neutrality amendment to the bill, which included language to ensure fair access to the Internet without discrimination, Sohn said.