Google becomes the second large online tech giant to announce that it will no longer promote Canadian news sources on its platforms, following passage of the Online News Act (Bill C-18).
Google to remove news links in Canada in response to online news law | CBC News | John Paul Tasker:
June 29, 2023 - "Google said Thursday it will remove Canadian news content from its search, news and discover products after a new law meant to compensate media outlets comes into force.... The decision comes after the government's contentious C-18 legislation passed Parliament last week.
"The bill has been criticized by tech giants like Meta and Google who say it's unfair to impose what amounts to a tax on links. Some smaller media outlets and experts have blasted the regime because they claim the bulk of the financial benefits will accrue to a handful of a large media players.
"'We're disappointed it has come to this. We don't take this decision or its impacts lightly and believe it's important to be transparent with Canadian publishers and our users as early as possible,' said Kent Walker, the president of global affairs at Google and Alphabet. 'The unprecedented decision to put a price on links (a so-called "link tax") creates uncertainty for our products and exposes us to uncapped financial liability simply for facilitating Canadians' access to news from Canadian publishers.'
"The government and larger media outlets, including the newspaper lobby group and broadcasters like the CBC and CTV, have said social media companies should compensate news outlets for the use of their content.
"Heritage Minister Pablo Rodriguez suggested Thursday he has no intention of backing down.... 'Big tech would rather spend money to change their platforms to block Canadians from accessing good quality and local news instead of paying their fair share to news organizations,' Rodriguez said in a statement....
"Rodriguez added in an interview with CBC News that he was surprised by Google's statement because the government's talks with the company are ongoing. 'We're still having conversations with Google as recent at this morning,' he said. 'Google knows very well that the clarity they need is coming soon through regulation.'
"Just yesterday, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said the government was confident Google would come around on the legislation."
Read more: https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/google-canada-online-news-1.6892879
Google to block access to Canadian news | CBC News | June 29, 2023:
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