In an article for the ABA Antitrust Law Section, the authors review the economic literature on the effects of data privacy regulation on consumers and firms.
Policymakers and regulators have enacted laws and regulations in response to growing concerns about consumer privacy. Two key insights emerge. First, data exchanges between consumers and firms generate benefits and costs for both. Second, regulations that limit the collection and use of data to protect consumer privacy involve tradeoffs between these costs and benefits, with consequences for competition and innovation. Stronger data privacy is not free.
In this article, authors Vildan Altuglu, Conor Foley, and Lorenzo Michelozzi of Cornerstone Research review the economic literature on the effects of data privacy regulation on consumers and firms. The article is based on a May 2024 panel presentation hosted by the ABA Antitrust Section’s Committee on Privacy and Information Security; Dr. Altuglu moderated a discussion with Professor Avi Goldfarb of the University of Toronto and Professor Pinar Yildirim of the University of Pennsylvania.
This article was originally published in August 2024 in the newsletter of the American Bar Association’s Antitrust Law Section.
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