In its first comment on the FCC’s proposed rollback of net neutrality rules, Apple called on the agency to keep “strong, enforceable open internet protections.”

“We work hard to build great products, and what consumers do with those tools is up to them”

“We work hard to build great products, and what consumers do with those tools is up to them — not Apple, and not broadband providers,” the comment, signed by Vice President of Public Policy Cynthia Hogan, says.

The comment argues that the protections are important to consumers, and follows some of the arguments that net neutrality advocates have made in the past. Paid fast lines should not replace “content-neutral transmission of internet traffic,” the company argues, in part. The comment also calls for increased competition and transparency in the broadband market.

Apple says the current rules reflect open internet principles and that those principles “should form the foundation of any net neutrality framework going forward,” although the company did not promote any specific means of regulation, such as the classification of internet providers as “common carriers,” which they are under current rules.

The FCC first announced its plans in April, and the controversial rollback proposal just finished its frequently heated comment period. Apple’s comment appears to have been posted just under the deadline, coming on the last day for comments.

“Simply put, the internet is too important to consumers and too essential to innovation to be left unprotected and uncertain,” the comment concludes.