By Christopher S. Yoo –
Over the course of the last year, regulatory interest in network neutrality has intensified. This analysis suggests the need to understand the trade offs inherent in any decision to standardize around any particular design and to appreciate that any such standardization can have hidden costs. Only by framing standardization as a question of optimality can regulators discern when mandating network neutrality might be good for consumers and when economic welfare may be better served by permitting a greater diversity of network offerings.
