I don't think the article is arguing against regulation--it is arguing for competition. Thompson's point is that the real issue is not privacy, but that Facebo

I don't think the article is arguing against regulation--it is arguing for competition. Thompson's point is that the real issue is not privacy, but that Facebook is incentivized to disregard privacy because that have zero competition. That is, they have the luxury of disregarding user privacy because they have a monopoly on the social network (and have been allowed to strengthen it through acquisitions). I'd argue that both regulation and competition are necessary. Regulation to make data protected and portable, while punishing breach of data, and competition to allow the market to create alternatives. Right now people don't leave Facebook because there is nowhere else to go, and no way to take their graph with them.