Cosmic EA: How cost effective is informing ET?

Abstract

A number of people have raised about intentionally trying to make contact with extraterrestrials. Most famously, Stephen Hawking famously warned that based on the history of first-contacts on Earth we should fear enslavement, exploitation or annihilation by more advanced aliens and the METI proposal to beam high powered signals into space has drawn controversy as well as criticism from David Brin for METI’s failure to engage in consultation with a broad range of experts. However, I’ve noticed a distinct lack of consideration of the potential benefits to alien life as a result of such contact.