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Canadas news industryis falling apart. 450 news outletshave closed there since 2008. And more than 60 have shuttered in the past two years. So now, the Canadian government is advancing a bill that would force Facebook and Google to keep the countrys news publishers alive.
Inspired by anAustralian lawpassed last year, the Canadian billcalled C-18, or the Digital News Actwould compel big tech platforms to pay news publishers whose links appear on their services, or face arbitration. The Australian law caused an uproar after Facebookshut downnews, hospital, and emergency services pages to hamper it. But the Canadian bill is moving forward swiftly, quietly, and now seems inevitable.
We should see this pass no later than spring or summer of 2023, Canadian member of parliament Nathaniel Erskine-Smith told me. Probably even before that.
After Facebooks nuclear reaction to the Australian lawwhich passed after somewatering downother countries seemed uncertain to pursue similar initiatives. Nick Clegg, Facebooks president of global affairs, appeared confident in his companys approach in a recent interview. I dont think any business wouldve put up with a proposition where were just basically being asked to provide an uncapped subsidy to another industry, hesaid. Particularly an industry, in this case, the publishing industry, who derive all the value from us.
But now, Canada is demonstrating that Australias pay-for-news law may be the rule, not the exception. Erskine-Smith said Facebook hasnt responded as fiercely in Canada as it did in Australia, signaling it accepts whats coming. They learned their lesson from really battling in Australia, he said. They really just want to make the best of the situation.
Intriguingly, some of the strongest opposition to the Digital News Act in Canada is coming from news publishers themselves, particularly smaller ones who say the act could entrench larger publications at the expense of upstarts. In arecent open letter, more than 100 Canadian publishers made the case that the bills already led to secret backroom deals between the tech platforms and large publishers, and its passage may further separate the industrys winners and losers.
Google, meanwhile, hascriticizedthe bill, claiming it would break search and potentially lower Canadian journalism standards. Google CEO Sundar Pichai alsomet withCanadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau earlier in June, though the meeting was held behind closed doors. The lobbying appears unlikely to change the course of the bill, though. I dont think this legislation will ultimately be stopped or significantly slowed down from third-party efforts, Erskine-Smith said.
There is a flaw in relying on tech giants to save your business, namely that they may not remain giants forever. Meta, for instance, has lost more than 50% of its market cap this year. And if forced to share the wealth, it will have less of it to spread around. Erskine-Smith, though optimistic about the bill, acknowledged this weakness. I dont think this legislation is a silver bullet answer, he said.
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Canada Is Going to Make Big Tech Pay to Support Its Flagging Media Industry - Observer
