Meta Platforms has begun the process to end access to news on Facebook and Instagram for all users in Canada, it said on Tuesday, in response to a legislation requiring internet giants to pay news publishers.
The Online News Act, passed by the Canadian parliament, would force platforms like Google parent Alphabet and Meta to negotiate commercial deals with Canadian news publishers for their content.
“News outlets voluntarily share content on Facebook and Instagram to expand their audiences and help their bottom line,” Rachel Curran, Meta’s head of public policy in Canada, said. “In contrast, we know the people using our platforms don’t come to us for news.”
The office of Canadian Heritage Minister Pascale St-Onge, who is in charge of the government’s dealings with Meta, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
In a campaign against the law, which is part of a broader global trend to make tech firms pay for news, both Meta and Google said in June they would block access to news on their platforms in the country.
Canada’s legislation is similar to a ground-breaking law that Australia passed in 2021 and had triggered threats from Google and Facebook to curtail their services.
I hope they follow through.
Let this example of centralized control of an economy that was working just fine fail miserably. Let the companies die to be a lesson to the rest of them.
