Verizon wants the FCC to back away from regulations that would require broadband providers to obtain consumers' opt-in consent before using data about their Web activity for online behavioral advertising.

Allowing Internet service providers to serve behaviorally targeted ads would mark a "retreat from what Americans have always expected from their networks," FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler told lawmakers today.

The Association of National Advertisers suggests it will oppose regulations that would require broadband providers to obtain consumers' opt-in consent before drawing on their Web-surfing history for ad purposes.

Twitter has been battling the federal government over its national security policies since at least 2014, when the company sued for the right to disclose information about "National Security Letters" that it receives from the government.

The FCC has voted to approve Charter's $67 billion purchase of TWC and Bright House, which will extend the company's broadband footprint to around 30% of the country.

Lawmakers on the Senate Judiciary Committee plan to examine proposed new privacy rules that would limit Internet service providers' ability to use subscribers' Web-surfing history for ad purposes.

After years of delays and false starts, the House of Representatives recently passed a bill that would require law enforcement officials to obtain warrants before accessing all emails and documents stored in the cloud.

"Creators are legitimately worried about the prospect that future set top boxes, or their functional equivalents, could incorporate apps such as Popcorn Time or its functionality," two lawmakers say in a letter to the FCC.

"Clear Channel Outdoor has tens of thousands of mobile and digital billboards across the United States and plans to provide advertisers with data on individuals who pass its billboards," New York Senator Chuck Schumer says in a letter to the FTC.