The Canadian government says it has learned from Australia's experience when it comes to requiring online giants to pay news outlets to use their journalism, and has framed its bill to avoid the country's pitfalls.
Heritage Minister Pablo Rodriguez on Tuesday introduced a bill modelled on an Australian law making digital platforms such as Google pay Canadian media outlets for reusing their journalism.
One official in Rodriguez's Heritage Department, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss matters not public, said the government has studied the Australian bill and has spoken repeatedly to Australian officials. They say Canada's bill makes it clear digital companies will have the freedom to strike private deals with papers and other media outlets, which must fulfil set criteria.
Michael Geist, the University of Ottawa's Canada Research Chair in internet and e-commerce law, predicts Meta, which owns Facebook and Instagram, and Google will fiercely resist efforts to make them pay for links to news sites posted on their platforms. Geist said the bill creates an incentive for news organizations to post more and more links on Facebook because they could get more compensation for doing so.The Canadian bill says a portion of compensation should be used to support the production of local, regional and national news, as well as Indigenous and racialized content. Geist said platforms could insist a set proportion of funds back these objectives.
The bill will also enhance media organizations' bargaining power and address a market imbalance. It will permit news organizations, big and small, to team up to bargain collectively with digital giants for compensation.
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