It has been filing-to-filing combat between MetroPCS, Free Press, and the Consumers Union over whether the wireless carrier's current 4G offerings violate the Federal Communications Commission's new net neutrality rules. Free Press has released another statement insisting that MetroPCS plans "block and discriminate against Internet content, applications and websites," thus running afoul of key FCC open Internet provisions.

"MetroPCS demands that its subscribers make a choice between a restricted Internet experience or paying extra fees to access websites, content and applications," charges Free Press' Chris Riley. "But those should not be the only options."

The wireless service pushes back that those options are fine, especially if for consumers on "fixed incomes or who are credit-challenged."

"MetroPCS supports an open Internet," the company wrote to the FCC on Monday, "and is trying to make that a reality by offering consumers affordable broadband wireless Internet access data options that will spur broadband wireless Internet access services adoption and break through to consumers who in the past were on the wrong side of the digital divide."

Irony alert: while MetroPCS defends its new plans as legal within the framework of the Commission's open Internet rules, the company, along with Verizon, has asked a Federal appeals court to block them—even before the provisions have been officially released via the Federal register.

But all contradictions aside, let us consider MetroPCS's bargain-basement view of cyberspace and the corner that the company wants to carve out in it.

We are hurrying as fast as we can

As we've reported, MetroPCS's new 4G LTE monthly "no long term commitment" plans via the Samsung Craft feature phone offer three tiers of service (in the company's words):

A $40 Service Plan (price includes all applicable taxes and regulatory fees): This plan provides unlimited voice and text service, and Web access to all lawful websites, but does not allow Multimedia Streaming.

A $50 Service Plan (price includes all applicable taxes and regulatory fees): This plan includes all of the services included in the $60 plan, except that Multimedia Streaming is capped at 1GB.

A $60 Service Plan (price includes all applicable taxes and regulatory fees): This plan remains unchanged from the initially launched $60 plan that was offered when the 4G LTE service was rolled out initially. It includes unlimited voice, unlimited text,

unlimited Web browsing (including Multimedia Streaming) plus MetroSTUDIO, including MetroSTUDIO’s video-on-demand features.

MetroPCS defines "Multimedia Streaming" as "video on demand services and multimedia uploads and downloads." All of this is offered via MetroPCS's aforementioned MetroSTUDIO service, which offers ringtones, mp3 downloads, and VOD news, sports, and TV shows.

One question is whether these plans will include access to offerings like Skype and Netflix. We called around to various MetroPCS stores, and the answer we got was no. Free Press concedes that the Craft is not a smartphone, but worries that this sort of approach could eventually be applied to them, too.

The advocacy group says that even though the Commission adopted relatively light open Internet rules for mobile services, they do state that:

A person engaged in the provision of mobile broadband Internet access service, insofar as such person is so engaged, shall not block consumers from accessing lawful websites, subject to reasonable network management; nor shall such person block applications that compete with the provider’s voice or video telephony services, subject to reasonable network management.

"Offering a service plan that does not permit the use of Skype, Google Voice, or other VoIP applications constitutes a violation of this rule," the Free Press filing says.

MetroPCS pushes back that it's planning on including all these aforementioned features, "and was in the process of implementing this policy when FP filed its letter," the response explains. "Notably, the Net Neutrality Order purposefully allowed a period of time—which has not yet run—before the new rules become effective in order to give carriers an opportunity to take the steps necessary to comply with the new rules."

Where's Vimeo?

So MetroPCS has had time to sue the FCC over these rules, but it needs more leeway to honor them. In any event, there's some back and forth over why the Craft offers an application for YouTube but "appears to block some websites (e.g. Vimeo)," charges Free Press, "while allowing some multimedia streaming services (e.g. YouTube)."

MetroPCS answers that its choice of Web app was dictated by the popularity of YouTube. "MetroPCS didn't pick YouTube; the free market did."

And in any event, "The wireless rule only prohibits providers of mobile broadband Internet access service from blocking applications that compete with the providers voice or video telephony service. This rule has no applicability to Vimeo or other streaming video services that Free Press is seeking to promote over YouTube."

Finally, the company says that while MetroPCS customers may choose to forgo 4G multimedia streaming or cap its usage in exchange for a lower priced plan, they can still get all this stuff or side-load content via WiFi. Subscribers "also are free to change their plan at any time without penalty to garner additional access over the MetroPCS network to Multimedia Streaming," the response adds.

So the question facing the FCC is whether MetroPCS's clipped, chaotic, and tiered system for offering the applications and services most consumers expect from wireless broadband represents adequate compliance with the agency's net neutrality rules. You can get it all, somehow, via WiFi or for a few more bucks, the carrier claims. Or you can choose to forgo some of it in exchange for a lower price.

But is that the open Internet? Maybe it's the budget version.

"The goal of MetroPCS is simple: Wireless for All," the company's letter concludes. "Providing more choice and flexibility has been core to the mission of the company since its inception."