The Federal Communications Commission will not vote on new net neutrality rules before 2015, with commission Chairman Tom Wheeler caught between the wishes of President Barack Obama and Internet providers like Comcast on how the agency can best ensure all Web traffic is treated equally.

The rules will not be on the agenda for the commission's meeting on Friday or its December session, FCC spokeswoman Kim Hart says, meaning the issue won't get a vote this year. The delay follows the commission’s choice this summer to extend the public comment period on the proposed rules, which resulted in nearly 4 million submissions – many from people concerned the regulations could damage competition and access to content online if not written carefully.

With that in mind, Obama recently called for the FCC to extend its legal authority over phone companies, codified in Title II of the Communications Act, to Internet service providers. Consumer advocacy groups like Public Knowledge have said using that Title II authority could allow net neutrality rules to survive legal challenges, like the lawsuit from Verizon Communications that led to earlier rules being struck down in January. The main tenets of net neutrality are that Internet providers cannot block or disadvantage content from websites with interests rivaling their own.

Delaying a vote on revisions to the proposed rules, which were first introduced in May, could give Internet providers like Comcast and Verizon more time to pressure Wheeler to draft rules that would favor their businesses. Wheeler has said the Title II approach "is on the table,” but is reportedly still torn on whether to go that route.

A current proposal from Wheeler has been broadly criticized for its potential to enable companies to charge for priority Internet speeds, which could disadvantage websites that cannot afford the extra expense and create new costs that Web businesses might pass on to consumers. Allowing such “fast lanes” could have a particularly damaging impact on sites that rely on download speeds, potentially lowering options online for gaming, chatting or any services that use video, ranging from education to adult entertainment.

Telecoms like AT&T and Comcast also fear the net neutrality regulations could make potential investors uncertain about what to expect from the FCC and thus discourage funding for Internet projects. AT&T CEO Randall Stephenson countered Obama’s support of Title II by telling an analyst conference in New York that he would “pause” the company's recently announced investment in fiber broadband until the FCC made its intentions clear about net neutrality.

The FCC returned fire by asking for information about AT&T’s deployment of fiber optic service in relation to its proposed purchase of DirecTV.

“We can’t go out and just invest that kind of money … not knowing under what rules that investment will be governed,” Stephenson said during the Nov. 12 conference.

Waiting until 2015 to vote on net neutrality means the FCC, an independent agency, likely will face more scrutiny from the incoming Republican majority in Congress. Republicans like House Speaker John Boehner of Ohio broadly oppose net neutrality, particularly the Title II option, out of fear that new rules could discourage investment.