Meta, the parent company for social media platforms such as Facebook and Instagram intends to follow through with no longer giving news availability to Canadians following Bill C-18, the Online News Act becoming law on Thursday.
The law forces tech giants such as Meta and Google to pay news outlets for posting their journalism on their platforms.
“We have repeatedly shared that in order to comply with Bill C-18, passed today in Parliament, content from news outlets, including news publishers and broadcasters, will no longer be available to people accessing our platforms in Canada” said in a statement by Meta.
Meta says it will start to block news for Canadian users over the next few months with change not being immediate.
With Bill C-18 given royal assent, the Department of Canadian Heritage will draft regulations and provide guidance on implementing the act which is expected to be around 6 months before Bill C-18 comes into force.
Canadian Heritage Minister Pablo Rodriguez in a statement says “A free and independent press is fundamental to our democracy. It levels the playing field by putting the power of big tech in check and ensuring that even our smallest news business can benefit through this regime and receive fair compensation for their work.”
Vice President of Google News Richard Gringas says Bill C-18 will not encourage the continuation or expansion of publisher licensing agreements and instead could jeopardize products, services and investments which benefit the news ecosystem and all Canadians.
Bill C-18 does not name any specific companies but it will apply to platforms such as Google and Facebook.
If any large company chooses to stop making news content available to Canadians they will no longer be obligated to share profits.
