> Why would there be any significant added cost to consumer good pricing?
Assuming ad tech makes advertising more effective, banning it would make challenging a market incumbent more difficult. You'd need to burn more cash to teach more consumers about your product, a larger fraction of whom would be outside your target market.
Granted, ad tech does not always add value. And there is a legitimate question as to the trade-off between privacy and consumer prices. But the tradeoff exists. Reducing the threat of new entrants means incumbents will raise prices.
Assuming ad tech makes advertising more effective, banning it would make challenging a market incumbent more difficult. You'd need to burn more cash to teach more consumers about your product, a larger fraction of whom would be outside your target market.
Granted, ad tech does not always add value. And there is a legitimate question as to the trade-off between privacy and consumer prices. But the tradeoff exists. Reducing the threat of new entrants means incumbents will raise prices.