Meta: Meta says it will end news access for Canadians: Here’s why – Times of India

Facebook-parent company Meta has said that it will end availability of news content in Canada if the country’s Online News Act becomes a law. The Act, introduced in April last year, will make it mandatory for platforms like Meta and Google, to negotiate commercial deals and pay news publishers for their content.
“A legislative framework that compels us to pay for links or content that we do not post, and which are not the reason the vast majority of people use our platforms, is neither sustainable nor workable,” news agency Reuters quoted a Meta spokesperson as saying.
Google News and Facebook provide news content from various publications globally on their platforms, helping them get advertising.

The Canadian news media industry reportedly asked the government for a regulation of tech companies to allow the industry to recoup financial losses it has suffered as tech giants gained greater market share of advertising.
It is to be noted that the proposal in Canada will force digital platforms to feature Canadian content.
Countries bringing revenue sharing law
New Zealand and Australia are the other two countries that have asked companies like Google and Facebook to pay news publishers for content that makes its way on their platforms.
In December, New Zealand Broadcasting Minister Willie Jackson said, “It’s not fair that the big digital platforms like Google and Meta get to host and share local news for free. It costs to produce the news and it’s only fair they pay.”

Meta’s concerns
Meta last year raised concerns about the legislation and warned it might be forced to block news-sharing on its platform. The Wall Street Journal cited Meta’s regional policy director, Mia Garlick, as saying that New Zealand’s proposal misunderstands the relationship between Facebook and news.
Facebook and Google have reportedly said that publishers benefit by having their links shared on the platform as it drives traffic to their websites. Last month, Google started testing limited news censorship as a potential response to the bill.