U.S. web companies on Monday urged regulators to restrict the ability of Internet providers to strike deals for faster delivery of some web traffic. The Internet Association, which represents three dozen web companies such as Google, Netflix and Amazon.com, made their case in a filing with the Federal Communications Commission, which plans to establish new so-called "net neutrality" rules.

The rules guide how Internet service providers (ISPs) manage traffic on their networks, aiming to ensure they do not unfairly limit consumers' access to website and applications.

In January, a court ruling struck down the FCC's previous version of such rules. The agency is now collecting public comments on a proposal that would ban ISPs from blocking users' access to websites or applications but allow some "commercially reasonable" deals between content providers and ISPs to prioritize delivery of some traffic.

The Internet Association is criticizing the possibility of ISPs charging content providers "for enhanced or prioritized access" and called for equal Internet traffic rules for both wired and wireless networks.

"The Internet is threatened by broadband Internet access providers who would turn the open, best-efforts Internet into a pay-for-priority platform more closely resembling cable television than today's Internet," the group wrote.

The Internet Association argued that allowing technical "reasonable network management" should give ISPs enough flexibility to deal with congested networks, while paid prioritization on non-congested networks is likely to mean faster download speeds for some at the expense of others.

The Internet Association in the next few weeks plans to roll out a campaign about the FCC's proposal and net neutrality