Ottawa to suspend advertising on Facebook, Instagram in ongoing disagreement over Online News Act

Heritage Minister Pablo Rodriguez says the federal government will suspend all its advertising on Facebook and Instagram, after what he called the social media giant Meta's 'unreasonable' and 'irresponsible' decision to pull Canadian news from its platforms in response to the Online News Act.

Heritage Minister Pablo Rodriguez says the federal government will suspend all its advertising on Facebook and Instagram, after what he called the social media giant Meta’s “unreasonable” and “irresponsible” decision to pull Canadian news from its platforms in response to the Online News Act.

The federal government’s Online News Act, C-18, passed Parliament nearly two weeks ago, and it forces digital giants like Google and Meta to pay media outlets for content that is shared, previewed or otherwise repurposed on their platforms.

Both Meta and Google have announced since the bill passed they will block Canadian news in response to the Act.

“Today we’re calling on both platforms to stay at the table, work through the regulatory process with us, and contribute their fair share and keep news on their platform,” Rodriguez said Tuesday.

Rodriguez told CTV’s Power Play last week he was “a bit surprised” by Google’s decision to block Canadian news outlets from its search engine, adding his office had been in discussions with the digital giant.

The heritage minister reiterated Wednesday those conversations are ongoing, and he’s confident the federal government and Google will be able to reach an agreement, so there are no plans to suspend advertising with that company at this point.

More to come.