Canadians will no longer have access to news content on Facebook and Instagram, Meta says
CBC
The social media giant Meta has confirmed that it will end access to news on its social media sites for all Canadian users before Bill C-18, the Online News Act, comes into force.
The tech company made the announcement Thursday, the day after Parliament passed Bill C-18. The law will force tech giants like Meta and Google to pay news outlets for posting their journalism on their platforms.
Meta said it will begin to block news for Canadian users over the next few months and the change will not be immediate.
"We have repeatedly shared that in order to comply with Bill C-18 … content from news outlets, including news publishers and broadcasters, will no longer be available to people accessing our platforms in Canada," said Meta in a media statement.
The bill is awaiting royal assent after passing both the House and the Senate. Once it receives assent, it should take six months to come into force.
In response to Meta's announcement, Heritage Minister Pablo Rodriguez said in a media statement that following royal assent of Bill C-18, the federal government will engage in a "regulatory and implementation process."
He said Meta currently has no obligations under the Act.
"If the government can't stand up for Canadians against tech giants, who will?" said Rodriguez.
A spokesperson for the minister said his office had meetings with Facebook and Google this week.
"We look forward to further discussions with the platforms," they said.
Meta first threatened to end access to news content for Canadian users of Facebook and Instagram earlier this month, in response to the looming passage of Bill C-18.
The company said it was conducting tests on ending news access for a small percentage of Canadians. Between one and five per cent of the 24 million Canadians that use Facebook or Instagram were said to be affected.
Meta said this test is still ongoing.
"The changes affecting news content will not otherwise impact Meta's products and services in Canada," the company said.
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