Stricter Privacy Regulations for Online Advertising Will Harm the Free Internet

New evidence from an academic study on the effect of privacy regulations in Europe further bolsters the case ITIF and others have long made: strict privacy regulations of the kind Congress is now considering will have an adverse impact on the Internet eco-system. This article discusses how privacy legislation under consideration could reduce the effectiveness of online advertising and thus reduce the available revenue to support free or low-cost content, applications and services.