The CRTC has announced a new rule that requires big tech companies, including Google (well, only Google so far), to pay fees to cover the cost of overseeing the Online News Act.
The decision, made on February 26, 2025, ensures that companies distributing news in Canada contribute financially to the regulatory process. In other words, the CRTC is making Google pay the costs of implementing the Online News Act. Google is the only one so far that’s paying news publishers and now it also has to pay the CRTC for implementing the law. This almost sounds like a story out of The Onion.
Starting April 1, 2025, the CRTC will charge platforms like Google a cost recovery fee to fund its work under the law. The Online News Act was designed to make large digital platforms negotiate deals with Canadian news outlets to support journalism. When Google News links to publishers, these media outlets get traffic, which generates ad revenue. But the CRTC says this is not enough.
Since Google has already agreed to pay $100 million annually to Canadian news publishers, it has requested an exemption from some requirements of the law. However, it will still be responsible for paying regulatory fees.
Google had pushed back, arguing that it shouldn’t be the only company covering the CRTC’s costs. But for now, Google is the only platform required to pay, as other tech giants like Meta (Facebook and Instagram) have opted out of sharing news in Canada to avoid these rules.
Despite concerns about transparency, the CRTC assured that Google’s financial details would remain confidential and that fees would only cover the cost of regulating the news bargaining process. The new regulations will be officially published in the Canada Gazette and take effect on April 1, 2025.
The new fee comes amidst heightened Canada-US tensions over tariffs (they going to hit Canada on March 4 at 25%). Surely the timing of this fee could not come at a worse time.
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Every progressive government is going after these companies, thinking they can all just tap into their bank account as their own piggy banks. I wonder if they all think this kind of leeching will last forever with no repercussions.