Economists Say Network Neutrality Regulation Would Harm Consumers

WASHINGTON, April 12, 2010 – A group of well-known economists has determined that the Federal Communications Commission’s proposed network neutrality regulations would harm consumer welfare.

The group of 21 economists includes Jerry Brito of George Mason University’s Mercatus Center, Robert Crandall of the Brookings Institution, David Farber with Carnegie Mellon University, and Jeffrey Eisenach and Hal Singer of Navigant Economics.

They say the government should not attempt to regulate the networks of high-speed Internet service providers to ensure that those companies give all consumers equal service.

“The economic evidence provides no support for the existence of market failure sufficient to warrant” the type of regulation proposed by the FCC, according to a statement from the group promoting the report “Network Neutrality: The Economic Evidence.”

The economists believe that “to the extent the types of conduct addressed in the [notice of proposed rulemaking] may, in isolated circumstances, have the potential to harm competition or consumers, the commission has and other regulatory bodies have the ability to deter or prohibit such conduct on a case-by-case basis, through the application of existing doctrines and procedures.”