Last week, an organization that calls itself the “American Consumer Institute” released a study that claims that net neutrality will cost consumers $69 billion. Naturally, net neutrality advocates quickly jumped out to challenge the facts and conclusions in the study and to prove that net neutrality would have no cost on consumers.

Hmm… no? Wait, I think I got that wrong. I mean: Net neutrality advocates quickly found that an ACI employee that had worked for the telecom industry. Conflict of interest! Sock puppet for big corporations! That fact alone is enough for them to dismiss the entire study without addressing any of the facts at all. Whew, that was close!

From savetheinternet.com

Elsewhere, a group calling itself the American Consumer Institute emerged from obscurity touting a new report which claims that a federal Net Neutrality law would cost consumers billions of dollars in higher Internet connection fees.

The problem is the American Consumer Institute is nothing but a front for a former chief economist of the phone company now known as Verizon — who also moonlights as a consultant for the telecom industry.

If you go to the ACI Website, however, nowhere does it mention this obvious conflict of interest.

For the record, I don’t agree or disagree with the study. I haven’t even read it. I don’t need to read it to know that taking away people’s property and their right to make voluntary agreements between one another will hurt the economy and cost people money. Will it come out to $69 million? My guess is that it will cost more if you factor in the loss of control that telecoms and cable companies will lose over their networks, but I’m not really sure. But if net neutrality costs a total of $1.00 I still think it’s too much. This is America, and we should not be using our government to take away money and property from other individuals without their consent.

You can view the press release here (pdf) and the entire study here (pdf).