Facebook-parent Meta Platforms Corporation told reporters Saturday that if the nation’s Online News Act is enacted in its present form, it will end the accessibility of news and information for Canadians on its portals.
The bill would require Meta and Google to discuss advertising deals and charge news publishing houses for their information. A Meta spokesperson argued that the proposed legislation was “neither sustainable nor workable,” and expressed concern that it would force them to pay for links or content that they did not post.
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The move follows Google’s recent tests on news censorship and both firms’ ongoing expansion of their market share in branding. The Canadian news media industry has called for more regulatory oversight of tech businesses.
The “Online News Act,” or House of Commons bill C-18, which was implemented in April of last year, outlined rules that would require platforms such as Meta as well as Alphabet Inc child company Google to discuss advertising deals as well as charge news publishing houses for their information.
“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 a reason to suspend news access in the country.
Source: usnews.com
Meta’s move follows after Google began testing restricted news censorship as a possible reaction to the legislation last month.
The Canadian news media industry has pressed the government regarding more regulatory oversight of tech businesses so as to recover financial losses sustained over the years as technical behemoths such as Google as well as Meta progressively expand their market share in branding.
Pablo Rodriguez, Canadian Heritage Minister, stated in a statement issued on Sunday that it was disheartening to see Facebook stooping to threats rather than cooperating with the Canadian government in good conscience and that the C-18 bill was not related to how Facebook tends to make news media accessible 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.”
Source: usnews.com
The year before, Facebook expressed concern about the legislation as well as warned that it could potentially be pressured to inhibit news-sharing on its platform.
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Other nations which have questioned businesses like Facebook and Google to pay news publishing houses for material featured on their portals include New Zealand as well as Australia.
In December, New Zealand Broadcasting Minister Willie Jackson said, “It’s not fair that the big digital platforms like Google and Meta get to host and share local news for free. It costs to produce the news and it’s only fair they pay.”
Source: timesofindia.indiatimes.com
I am a student pursuing my bachelor’s in information technology. I have a interest in writing so, I am working a freelance content writer because I enjoy writing. I also write poetries. I believe in the quote by anne frank “paper has more patience than person