Canada reaches deal with Google on Online News Act

By Barry Ellsworth

TRENTON, Canada (AA) – The Canadian government and Google reached a deal Wednesday under which the search engine giant will pay CAN$100 million (US$73.6 million) annually to Canadian news companies so it can share their stories on its platforms.

The deal heads off Google’s threat to block the ability to search for Canadian news on Google in Canada because of the Online News Act, which made paying Canadian publishers for sharing news mandatory. Meta had already stopped distributing news through Facebook and Instagram and critics were skeptical that Ottawa could reach a deal with Google.

"Many doubted that we would be successful, but I was confident we would find a way to address Google's concerns," Heritage Minister Pascale St-Onge told reporters outside the House of Commons on Wednesday.

The Online News Act was passed to help Canadian newspapers. Many are in dire financial difficulty because the news traditionally paid for in their publications was being reproduced free online. The law only applies to digital platforms that have 20 million monthly users and yearly revenues of CAN$1 billion (US$736 million). Meta and Google are the only companies affected.

“Google has agreed to properly support journalists, including local journalism,” Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said. “Unfortunately, Meta continues to completely abdicate any responsibility towards democratic institutions.”

Under the agreement, Google earned a few concessions. The Canadian government had estimated the search engine giant should pay about CAN$170 million (US$125 million) in annual compensation to news organizations, while Google estimated $100 million. Google also wanted to deal with a single entity representing all Canadian publishers, which was granted.

But Meta remains a holdout in the face of the Google agreement. A Meta spokesperson told the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation that it will not change its position while the Online News Act remains in effect.