The US House Energy and Commerce Committee’s chairman called for a hearing on net neutrality rules on 7 September and asked CEOs of companies on both sides of the debate to testify.

Invitations were sent to the heads of tech giants Facebook, Amazon, Alphabet and Netflix, operators Verizon and AT&T and cable companies Comcast and Charter Communications.

Some companies said they were reviewing the letter but none said if they will testify, according to Reuters.

The report added that Comcast supported the hearing and believes “the best way to stop the regulatory ping-pong on this important issue is for Congress to enact bipartisan legislation.”

Chairman Greg Walden said in a statement: “With almost everyone in agreement about fundamental principles to prevent anti-competitive behaviour such as throttling and blocking, I think we are closer than ever to achieving a lasting resolution. The time has come to get everyone to the table and get this figured out.”

Technology subcommittee chairman Marsha Blackburn said she hoped the hearing “will create an opportunity for fruitful discussions and a real solution.”

“The last FCC, at the behest of President Obama, pushed far beyond its legal authority to create an unstable set of mandates and a mountain of unanswered questions… it has been encouraging to see a change in tone from some quarters and willingness to work with Congress to bring needed certainty to all participants in the internet economy,” she added.

Meanwhile Democrats on the committee want Republicans to invite small businesses and consumers as well.

Twitter under fire
Two Republicans in the US Congress slammed Twitter following allegations the micro blogging platform had briefly blocked users from posting links to an AT&T post criticising the government’s net neutrality rules.

A Twitter spokesman at the time said the link was “erroneously caught in Twitter’s anti-spam filters”.

Earlier this month, AT&T joined scores of internet companies in a widespread online demonstration to promote net neutrality, despite its long-standing opposition to current FCC rules on the issue.

Following that, the Internet Association, a group representing technology companies including Alphabet and Facebook, said “rolling back net neutrality rules would stifle innovation and choice online.”