Canada encountered many problems as they revealed the Online News Act, where news outlets would get a chunk of ad revenues that tech companies get. Others still refuse to budge, but Google finally agreed to the deal and is providing tens of millions for it.
Canadian News Publishers Get Their Cut
The initial response of Google to Canada's Online News Act was to remove links to its news across its platforms. Fortunately, a fair deal has already been reached, and citizens of the country can continue to read news through Google.
Google's deal with the Great White North finally means that news publications will now get a portion of the ad revenues from Google, although the percentage is unknown. The only officially revealed factor is the number that the company is willing to share, which is $73.6 million.
Canadian Heritage Minister Pascale St-Onge stated that following weeks of productive discussions, he was happy to announce that they have "found a path forward with Google for the implementation of the Online News Act," as per The Guardian.
The rules of the Online News Act are still being finalized, with the deadline of December 19th this year. It was first passed back in June. Alphabet President of Global Affairs, Kent Walker said that the Canadian government has committed to "addressing our core issues with Bill C-18."
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau praised Google for finally reaching a deal with the government, all while criticizing Meta, expressing that "Meta continues to completely abdicate any responsibility towards democratic institutions."
Meta's spokesperson said that unlike search engines, they do not proactively pull news from the internet to place in their users' feeds, adding that they have long been clear that the only way they can "reasonably comply" with the Online News Act is to end news availability in Canada.
Meta Refuses to Pay Still
The social media giant released a statement back in May making their position clear on the matter. Meta's President of Global Affairs, Nick Clegg said that the Online News Act is based on a "fundamentally flawed premise."
He clarified that Meta does not benefit unfairly from people sharing links to news on the company's platforms. On the other hand, news publishers are actually benefiting from posting on Meta's social media sites as it gives them more exposure, which translates to more clicks.
By the company's estimation, access to their platforms led to about 1.9 billion clicks in the 12 months to April 2022, which is considered free marketing and has earned the news publications over $230 million.
Furthermore, the tech giant pointed out that publishers choose to share their content because it drives traffic to their websites. Through social media exposure, businesses can encourage readers to subscribe to their service and grow their audience.
Since Meta refused to comply with the legislation since they believe that it's not fair, they have decided to simply end the availability of news content for Canada on both Facebook and Instagram.
