On Wednesday, Meta Platforms Inc. META announced its decision to cease news sharing on its platforms in Canada, in anticipation of the impending Online News Act (Bill C-18).
What Happened: In a corporate blog post, Meta stated that news availability “will be ended on Facebook and Instagram for all users in Canada prior to the Online News Act (Bill C-18) taking effect,” Politico reports.
The bill, which has cleared the Senate and awaits royal assent, has been a point of contention for tech giants like Meta and Alphabet Inc’s GOOGL GOOG Google, as it would require them to negotiate compensation deals with news organizations for sharing links to news content.
Heritage Minister Pablo Rodriguez expressed his disappointment with Meta’s decision, stating, “Facebook knows very well that they have no obligations under the act right now.” His office confirmed ongoing discussions with Meta and Google officials regarding the bill.
Why It Matters: This move by Meta echoes a similar stance taken by Google earlier this year, when it tested blocking some content in Canada in response to the same bill, as reported by Benzinga.
Both companies have previously faced similar situations in other countries. In 2021, Meta blocked news in Australia after the country passed a similar law, leading to chaos. However, both Meta and Google eventually inked deals with the country’s news publishers.
Meta’s decision to pull the plug on news sharing in Canada is not its first such move. The company had previously threatened to block access to news articles on its social media networks in California in response to a proposed state legislative bill, the California Journalism Preservation Act, as Benzinga reported.
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