Google to compensate Canadian publishers $73 million annually

The agreement addresses the tech giant’s reservations about the Online News Act, compelling major companies to share advertising revenue with publishers

Canada and Google have struck an agreement to maintain links to news stories in search results, with the tech giant committing to an annual payment of $73.6 million, or C$100 million, to news publishers in the country.

This resolution addresses Google’s apprehensions regarding Canada’s Online News Act, designed to mandate significant internet companies to share advertising revenue with news publishers in the nation.

After weeks of constructive dialogues, I am pleased to declare that we have reached an agreement with Google for the implementation of the Online News Act,” stated Canada’s Heritage Minister Pascale St-Onge.

The Online News Act, aligning with a global movement to make internet giants compensate for news, was approved in June. The government is in the process of finalizing regulations, anticipated to be released by the December 19 deadline.

After thorough deliberations, we are content that the Canadian Government has pledged to address our fundamental concerns with Bill C-18,” stated Kent Walker, Alphabet’s President of Global Affairs. “We will persist in directing valuable traffic to Canadian publishers.”

As per the accord with Canada, Google will yearly contribute C$100 million, adjusted for inflation, to news enterprises, and the company will retain the choice to collaborate with a single collective for the distribution of these funds.

Having earlier warned of blocking news on its search engine—an essential source of traffic for virtually all internet websites—Google argued that Canada’s law was more rigorous than those in Europe and Australia. The company expressed concern about potential unlimited liability.

Google has committed to providing adequate support for journalists, including local journalism,” stated Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. “Regrettably, Meta persists in entirely relinquishing responsibility toward democratic institutions.

Meta Platforms, the additional internet behemoth subject to the law, has already restricted news sharing on Facebook and Instagram due to its apprehensions. This action has entangled the company in a prolonged dispute with prominent Canadian news publishers and has severely impacted smaller publications.

St-Onge stated that the agreement with Google demonstrates the effectiveness of the new law and urged Meta to clarify its choice to restrict news sharing in Canada.

She also mentioned that Canada retains the ability to revisit the agreement with Google in the future if more favorable arrangements are made elsewhere in the world. In the previous month, Google reached an agreement to pay a consortium of German publishers 3.2 million euros ($3.5 million) annually for featuring their news content.

Meta’s stance remains unaltered, as per a company statement.

Unlike search engines, we do not actively fetch news from the internet to display in our users’ feeds, and we have consistently clarified that the only practical way for us to comply with the Online News Act is to cease news availability for individuals in Canada,” stated the spokesperson.

The legislation was introduced in response to grievances from Canada’s media sector, advocating for stricter regulations on tech companies to prevent them from overshadowing news enterprises in the online advertising market.

Paul Deegan, the CEO of News Media Canada, an industry body, expressed approval for the agreement and conveyed gratitude to the government for ensuring monetary compensation for publishers. The Canadian Broadcasting Corp initially reported the deal.

“We applaud Google for their sincere and socially responsible approach,” Deegan stated in a released statement.

Meta has previously taken comparable actions. In 2021, it temporarily restricted news access on its platform in Australia following the passage of legislation requiring tech companies to compensate publishers for utilizing their news content. Subsequently, Meta reached agreements with Australian publishers.