© Reuters. FILE PHOTO: The logo of Meta Platforms’ business group is seen in Brussels, Belgium December 6, 2022. REUTERS/Yves Herman
(Reuters) -Facebook-parent Meta Platforms Inc (NASDAQ:) said on Saturday that it would end availability of news content for Canadians on its platforms if the country’s Online News Act passes in its current form.
The “Online News Act,” or House of Commons bill C-18, introduced in April last year laid out rules to force platforms like Meta and Alphabet (NASDAQ:) Inc’s Google to negotiate commercial deals and pay news publishers for their content.
“A legislative framework that compels us to pay for links or content that we do not post, and which are not the reason the vast majority of people use our platforms, is neither sustainable nor workable,” a Meta spokesperson said as reason to suspend news access in the country.
Meta’s move comes after Google last month started testing limited news censorship as a potential response to the bill.
Canada’s news media industry has asked the government for more regulation of tech companies to allow the industry to recoup financial losses it has suffered in the years as tech giants like Google and Meta steadily gain greater market share of advertising.
In a statement on Sunday, Canadian Heritage Minister Pablo Rodriguez said it was disappointing to see Facebook resorting to threats instead of working with the Canadian government in good faith, and the C-18 bill had nothing to do with how Facebook makes news available to Canadians.
“All we’re asking Facebook to do is negotiate fair deals with news outlets when they profit from their work,” Rodriguez said. “This is part of a disappointing trend this week that tech giants would rather pull news than pay their fair share.”
Facebook last year raised concerns about the legislation and warned it might be forced to block news-sharing on its platform.
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Canadian lawmakers are currently studying the possibility of introducing a controversial new law, the Online News Act. This act, if passed, would essentially allow the government to restrict access to news media outlets for Canadians.
While this law has its proponents, who argue that it would benefit the Canadian public by regulating “fake news” and improving transparency about the news, there are also those who contend that it could have a negative effect on the news media industry in Canada.
One such group is Meta, a nonprofit news-access organization dedicated to providing Canadians with access to reliable, unbiased news sources. In a statement released earlier this week, Meta expressed its concern about the proposed law, and warned that it could severely restrict the free flow of news across the Canadian media landscape.
Meta believes that the introduction of the Online News Act could result in the suppression of news stories, stifling the ability of Canadians to get news they can trust. The organization believes that this would ultimately lead to an overall decline in media literacy among Canadians, making them vulnerable to manipulation by those with potentially malicious intent.
To combat this potential decline in media literacy, Meta is currently advocating for government policies that will protect the interests of Canadians when it comes to access to news. These policies include stronger copyright enforcement to prevent the unauthorized use of news media content, as well as stricter rules prohibiting media conglomerates from manipulating public opinion through the use of misleading news stories.
Time will ultimately tell if the Online News Act is passed into law, and what impact it may have on the news-access landscape of Canada. However, it is clear from statements released by Meta that the current lack of regulation has already caused considerable harm to the Canadian media industry. It thus appears that the need for government action to ensure that Canadians are provided with access to reliable and accurate news sources is now more pressing than ever.
