Meta Bans Access To News For Canadian Users

Tyler Cross
Published on: August 3, 2023

Facebook’s parent company, Meta, made a significant announcement, declaring that it’s banning news content for Canadian users on both Facebook and Instagram over the next few weeks.

The move comes in response to the Online News Act passed by the Canadian parliament recently, which would require digital platforms to negotiate deals with local news organizations and compensate them for their content. The topic is highly controversial among corporations.

Meta’s spokesperson, Andy Stone, shared the company’s stance, stating that complying with the new legislation is not feasible.

“As we’ve always said, the law is based on a fundamentally flawed premise. And, regrettably, the only way we can reasonably comply is to end news availability in Canada,” he said.

Meta claims that Facebook and Instagram provide valuable tools for local publishers to connect with their communities and support established media outlets’ growth without charge, amounting to over CDN $230 million ($175 million USD) annually for news organizations.

Canadian Heritage Minister Pablo Rodriquez, the bill’s author, labeled Meta and Google as “deeply irresponsible” and “out of touch,” while defending the bill.

“The legislation is based on the incorrect premise that Meta benefits unfairly from news content shared on our platforms when the reverse is true,” argues Meta. “In the future, we hope the Canadian government will recognize the value we already provide the news industry and consider a policy response that upholds the principles of a free and open internet.”

Users in Canada will no longer be able to see any news content or links or share external news media on Facebook or Instagram, including international news.

Google, too, plans to remove news content from its platforms in the country before the law takes effect, as the company finds it “unworkable.” However, a similar law was passed in Australia, where their government successfully negotiated with the tech giants.

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• Source: https://www.safetydetectives.com/news/meta-bans-access-to-news-for-canadian-users/