Google will now contribute $100 million each year to Canadian news publishers, with payments adjusted for inflation. This agreement, made in 2023, allows Google to avoid direct negotiations with individual publishers under the Online News Act.
The Online News Act, which became law last year, requires big tech companies to pay publishers for news content shared on their platforms. To bypass these individual agreements, Google applied for an exemption, which was approved by the CRTC on Monday. Public consultations between the CRTC and Google’s exemption started earlier this summer.
With this five-year exemption, Google avoids negotiating separate deals but must still send $100 million annually through the Canadian Journalism Collective (CJC).
The CJC, tasked with managing and distributing the funds, will ensure the money is shared fairly across news outlets nationwide. Google’s first payment is due within 60 days of the decision. The CJC will also provide yearly updates to the CRTC to confirm the funds are reaching eligible news organizations.
While Google has settled with the federal government, Facebook has abided by not allowing the sharing of news links on its social network. The Online News Act aims to have companies like Google pay news organizations, because legacy media employees are not as smart as Silicon Valley engineers when it comes to digital ad tech.
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CAD$100M is about US$72M. It's almost like a rounding number on their financials..haha.
Government enforced welfare for dead legacy media. Propping up dead industry only because they are Party mouthpieces.
If by dead legacy media you mean press, this relates to the ‘news publishers’, including non legacy media. If by Party you mean any political party in general, not all news media toe the line of a specific party. Although, there is no doubt what is the affiliation of National Post, Sun News and Rebel News, to name a few. But I’m sure they will not have any qualms having their hands extended to receive their share of Google’s money they feel they deserve.
LOL. These funds are not intended for “conservative” outlets. Rebel news couldn’t even get a journalism tax credit, let alone free cash from Trudeau. This money is intended strictly for the LPC friendly media. Tow party line or lose access to funding.
Traditionally, in a free society, most people might recognize the obvious and inherent dangers with government funding media and deciding who qualifies for that funding. But, leftists and LPC supporters seem to have dropped any pretence of caring about free speech/free press. They unironically see it as “freedumb” and have even been convinced that free speech and an independent media are themselves dangerous.
Stop funding/subsidizing failed business models, it’s not sustainable. Stop funding friendly press, it’s dangerous and will have many consequences even the diehards won’t like. These shouldn’t be difficult concepts. They used to be common sense in the west.
I’m glad you find it funny. Nobody said funds are intended for conservative media. My point was that the funds are not aimed at one specific news media and that conservative media would gladly partake. As for Rebel News, if you are producing minuscule amount of original news and exclusively promote one view, how can you call your self a news outlet? And what about any semblance of integrity if you ask for financial relief from the same people you are criticizing?
But all that aside, your claim that only LPC media will get the funding is false. Out of $100M, the bastion of Trudeau propaganda (the CBC) is slated to get 7%. The rest of other private and public broadcasters, 30%. Remaining 63% should be distributed to print and digital media outlets that are producing original both local and national news content, based on the number of employed full-time journalists. Those who are eligible will still have to answer to Google, to their “call out” and after they demonstrate they qualify then they will have to negotiate with Google how the money will be distributed. Those who qualify but don’t want to be the part of that group have an option to negotiate directly with Google, but realistically that is a long shot.
So, not only LPC friendly media will get the money and it’s not that Trudeau will doling out the money. If it doesn’t happened as described above, I am willing to come back here and say I was wrong. If it does happened and not only LPC friendly media (however you define it) get the money, will you admit that you were?
No press should ever feel wrong to question or criticize the gov, regardless of where their funding comes from. But, your own suggestion that they should feel a lack of credibility for doing so is exactly the problem with such a scheme. It’s almost like that’s exactly the point and exactly the concern. It’s unfortunate that you miss something so obvious.
Are you also claiming to honestly think only CBC is in bed with LPC? Any outlet that doesn’t carry their water is smeared as far-right.
And, aside from this temporary deal with Google, whom do you think decides who gets funding?
The pretence must get tiring.
I’ll se you and up the ante: Anyone, including the press should not be prevented from questioning and more, criticizing the government or anybody that holds the power. You might have misunderstood my point or you are intentionally trying to misrepresent it to your advantage: I haven’t mention the lack of credibility but questionedintegrity – which is a different thing, I’m sure you can differentiate – so their integrity is in question not because they criticize the government but because although they hate it they don’t hate the the financial help from the same government. If one is highly principled in their criticism of the corrupt government, they won’t either ask nor accept any financial aid from said corrupt group of people to help them in their fight against them. To use your own words, it’s unfortunate that you miss something so obvious.
Never said that CBS is the only one in bed with Liberals. I haven’t even said that they are; ‘the bastion of Trudeau propaganda’ was a sarcasm. I’m sure there are many news outfits, big and small willing to sell their integrity and that isn’t confined solely to the Lib/Con divide. I see them lying shamelessly every day about other, much larger world issues concerning far more important things than that divide.
To answer your question, aside from this deal with Google, if it is the money the government controls in any way, it’s the government that decides how the funds are distributed. Always was and always will be. No surprise there. Never would even attempt to deny that. If it’s the money the government is not in control of, it might be a different story. But we were discussing the deal with Google here, so it’s not fair moving the goalposts as we go.
There has been a lot of dancing around, never to get to the answer to my question. If say, National Post gets some of the Google’s money, will you be honestly able to say that is government enforced welfare, proppingup dead industry only because they are theirmouthpieces?
The very idea that the press would lack integrity to question/criticize those who funding is kind of disgusting. It is absolutely trying to shame them into silence. And, that is exactly why govs shouldn’t fund media. It opens the door to the worst possible relationship between gov and press.
It’s not like that wasn’t the goal. Pretending it isn’t while asserting exactly it’s exactly your position is sort of cognitively dissonant.
I don’t know about cognitive dissonance, cause I didn’t quite get what you meant with pretending and asserting. But I would assert again that there is no integrity in expecting money from those who you are criticizing. And let’s be honest, if you go beyond criticizing and openly hate, then even more so. What is disgusting is the lack of spine when you go to fight the enemy and expect them to send you material aid so you can continue your noble fight. As a matter of principle, they might be right in their criticism but are still lacking integrity because the way they go about it. I noticed you are still avoiding to answer my question so I wont push anymore. That by itself is the answer.
Canadian press is a circus owned by government. F them all.
A drop in the bucket compared to how much the CBC CEO alone has cost us the taxpayer.
As per usual with this government, not well planned or thought out, executed and proof they still clearly have no idea what they're doing.