Google to Remove News Links in Canada Over Bill C-18

A Google sign at the company's office in San Francisco on April 12, 2023. (Jeff Chiu/AP Photo)

Google has announced it will remove links to Canadian news on its platforms in Canada due to the recently passed Bill C-18, which forces tech giants to compensate media outlets for content they share online.

“Bill C-18 has become law and remains unworkable. The Government has not given us reason to believe that the regulatory process will be able to resolve structural issues with the legislation,” said Kent Walker, Google’s president of global affairs, in a June 29 release.

Walker said as a result Google will be “removing links to Canadian news from our Search, News, and Discover products and will no longer be able to operate Google News Showcase in Canada,” when the new law comes into effect in December.

The Online News Act, which passed on June 21, requires that online platforms and digital news intermediaries like Google and Meta negotiate deals with and pay Canadian media outlets for any of the news and information linked on their platforms.

The legislation would also give the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) the power to require media organizations to follow a “code of ethics” in order to be eligible for news-sharing negotiations with digital platforms.

Walker said while the company did not take the decision to remove links to Canadian news “lightly,” a provision in Bill C-18 that puts a price on links would create “uncertainty” for Google’s products and expose the company to “uncapped financial liability simply for facilitating Canadians’ access to news from Canadian publishers.”

Google said it supports Canadian journalism through its programs and partnerships, such as the Google News Showcase program that includes agreements with over 150 news publications in Canada. The company also said it has linked to Canadian news publications “over 3.6 billion times” without charge, creating referral traffic worth $250 million annually.

“Ever since the Government introduced C-18 last year, we have shared our experiences in other countries and been clear that unworkable legislation could lead to changes that affect the availability of news on Google’s products in Canada,” Walker said. “We advocated for reasonable and balanced amendments to the legislation for over a year. None of our suggestions for changes to C-18 were accepted.”

Meta also confirmed on June 22 that Canadians would lose access to news on its social media sites due to Bill C-18.

Kevin Chan, Meta’s global policy director, previously told the House of Commons Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage on May 8 that the legislation put the company in an “unfavourable situation,” as it would have to either “operate in a flawed and unfair regulatory environment,” or end the availability of news content in Canada.

On June 27, Meta’s head of public policy in Canada, Rachel Curran, said the bill did not allow for negotiations outside the framework of the legislation and as a result, it had ended negotiations with Ottawa.

“We wish we weren’t here but we are here, and there is really nothing at this point that’s going to alter that trajectory,” she added.

Heritage Minister ‘Hopeful’ 

Google previously said it came close to also removing Canadians’ access to news on its platforms but said an “11th-hour” meeting with  Canadian Heritage Minister Pablo Rodriguez resulted in it delaying the decision.

On June 27, Rodriguez said he felt “hopeful” that Google and Meta would not make good on their threats to block access to Canadian news on their platforms. He added that if needed, the federal government would provide aid to newsrooms, but did not elaborate.

Rodriguez added that he remained unmoved in his view that Google will be subject to the law because of its market dominance in online advertising. He said that his conversation with Google was tough but constructive and that they were seeking “clarity” regarding the legislation.

During a press conference on May 9, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Meta’s argument about Bill C-18 was “dangerous” to Canada’s democracy and economy.

“Putting aside the jobs and communities that are supported by local journalism, by professional journalists, understanding what’s going on in the world around us, is an essential service,” he said.

On June 28, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said the federal government was still in talks with Google over their threats to block news sharing for Canadians.

“Conversations with Google are ongoing. It is important that we find a way to ensure that Canadians can continue to access content in all sorts of different ways,” he said.

He added that Meta had decided to “walk away rather than engage constructively” on Bill C-18, but said the federal government is “very much there to continue to have conversations with them.”

Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre said in a June 29 press release that Bill C-18 had resulted in a “media blackout.”

“Bill C-18 subsidizes big corporate media outlets while shoving new, innovative, and grassroots journalism by the wayside,” Poilievre said. “If Meta and Google won’t do it, the Liberals have said they’re just going to tack on more money to the big media outlets’ already massive subsidies.”

The Canadian Press contributed to this report.