The federal government says it legally can’t overturn a CRTC ruling that triples what major streaming platforms have to pay toward Canadian content, according to CityNews Halifax.
The Conservatives pushed a motion in the House of Commons asking cabinet to reject the decision, which forces large foreign streaming services to hand over 15 per cent of their Canadian revenues to fund local content. Conservative MP Rachael Thomas warned the cost will land on everyday Canadians, with the motion stating it “will be passed on to consumers who are already struggling with the rising cost of living.”
The feds say they simply don’t have the legal authority to step in. Kevin Lamoureux, parliamentary secretary to the government House leader, said the Broadcasting Act only allows cabinet to toss out CRTC decisions tied to broadcast licences, and this ruling isn’t one of them.
Independent experts back that up. Monica Auer, executive director of the Forum for Research and Policy in Communications, confirmed to CityNews Halifax that the ruling is “not a licensing decision and consequently cabinet cannot overturn it.” Since foreign streamers can’t legally hold Canadian broadcast licences, the cabinet’s hands are tied. Reversing course would mean unwinding a 2023 order that set the Online Streaming Act in motion, which Auer described as “tricky and time consuming.”
The pushback isn’t just coming from Parliament. The Motion Picture Association, which represents the likes of Netflix and Amazon, is calling for a rethink. U.S. Ambassador Pete Hoekstra has also waded in, saying streaming companies told him the ruling “will drive away investment and job creation in Canada’s creative sector” and that “this unfair tax will drive up costs for Canadian consumers and targets U.S. companies. This law should be immediately repealed.”
For Canadian subscribers, it’s pretty simple: companies don’t eat extra costs, they pass them on. So that will affect your streaming bill, which might push more people towards nefarious means to access media. It looks like we’re going full circle again.
Want to see more of our stories on Google?
P.S. Want to keep this site truly independent? Support us by buying us a beer, treating us to a coffee, or shopping through Amazon here. Links in this post are affiliate links, so we earn a tiny commission at no charge to you. Thanks for supporting independent Canadian media!
