Google and the CRTC have reached an agreement where the search and advertising giant will pay $100 million to news publishers instead of being subject to the finer details of the Canadian Online News Act.
This agreement was almost completed in March when Google proposed the $100 million per year payout, which Ottawa accepted. Now, the CRTC has also accepted the deal and has agreed to remove Google from the Online News Act for five years as long as it continues to pay $100 million, adjusted for inflation, each year.
The first payment will go to the Canadian Journalism Collective within 60 days, starting on October 28th. The Canadian Journalism Collective’s website describes itself as a federally incorporated nonprofit organization created to distribute funds under the Online News Act. The idea is that this governing body will disperse the funds fairly across the Canadian news landscape to help make sure the money makes an impact.
When the Online News Act first started, officials stated that Google should pay upwards of $172 million per year and Meta would need to pay closer to $62 million without a deal. So far, Meta has not made any forward-moving negotiations with the Canadian government, while Google bartered its way down to $100 million.
In a report from Wealth Professional, News Media Canada CEO Paul Deegan urged Meta to follow Google’s socially responsible example since Meta’s platforms, like Facebook and Instagram, are real tools used by journalists in Canada and are needed to keep news working in Canada.
As of right now, organizations recognized as journalism in Canada are unable to post on Facebook and Instagram. MobileSyrup has luckily skirted this ban, but many of our sibling publications at Zoomer Media have not been so lucky.
Header image credit: Shutterstock
Source: National Post, Wealth Professional
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