Google says it will remove links to Canadian news in response to journalism bill
Christopher Hutton
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Google will no longer share links to Canadian news outlets in protest of new legislation that would force the company to share profits with news outlets.
Google announced on Thursday that it was removing links to Canadian news from its Search, News, and Discover products in Canada in protest of C-18, also known as the Online News Act, which Canada’s legislative body passed last week. Google joined Facebook in protesting the bill.
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The restrictions could reflect how Big Tech will respond to Congress if it passes the similarly-written Journalism Competition and Preservation Act.
“C-18 is an unprecedented law that creates a link tax — a price on web links — and creates an untenable level of product and financial uncertainty that no business could accept,” Kent Walker, Google’s president of global affairs, said in a statement.
Google has not set a date for when this new limitation will go into effect, a spokesperson said. C-18 is expected to go into effect within the next 180 days after a regulatory review, and Google’s restrictions on Search will do the same following its approval. Non-Canadian users will still be able to read Canadian news outlets over Search.
Facebook parent Meta said it would also restrict access to news in protest of C-18. Canadian leadership was unfazed by Meta’s threat. It is unclear how Canadian leaders will respond to Google.
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Congress is considering a similar bill in the Journalism Competition and Preservation Act. Meta made identical threats over the JCPA. The Senate Judiciary Committee recently approved the bill and it is waiting to be considered by the Senate. It is expected to run into resistance in the House, as Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) emphasized that the bill would be “dead on the floor.”
Meta banned sharing and viewing news stories in Australia after the country passed a law requiring the Big Tech giant to pay news outlets for their content. The ban was reversed within days after international pressure.