Source: AFP
Canada’s print media will receive nearly two-thirds of Google’s annual Can$100 million ($75 million) payment to the country’s news outlets in exchange for distributing their content, the federal government announced Friday.
In late November, after months of negotiations, Ottawa and Google announced a “historic” deal where the tech giant will pay Canadian media companies compensation for lost advertising revenue.
“The share that television and radio will receive is limited to 30 percent, that of CBC/Radio-Canada (the Canadian public broadcaster) to 7 percent, which leaves the remaining 63 percent for the written press,” a federal official told reporters at a briefing.
Most of the payment will go to print media because it “really depends” on online platforms to distribute its content, the official added.
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![](https://images.yen.com.gh/images/219b48b426ede17c.jpg?impolicy=cropped-image&imwidth=256)
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“Canada has achieved something historic,” Canadian Heritage Minister Pascale St-Onge told reporters.
He reminded that “newsrooms are experiencing a crisis that affects journalism, the foundation of our democracy.”
The agreement between Canada and Google is part of the Electronic News Act, which aims to shore up a struggling Canadian news sector that has seen a large amount of advertising dollars and hundreds of publications shut down over the past decade. It takes effect on Tuesday.
Meta, Facebook’s parent company also affected by the new legislation, still opposes the text which it called “fundamentally flawed”.
Since August 1, Facebook and Instagram have blocked news content in Canada to avoid having to compensate media companies.
Many Canadian media outlets are struggling financially, with many announcing layoff plans in recent weeks.
Source: AFP