Canada and Facebook Reach Agreement to Resolve Advertising Dispute

Heritage Minister Pablo Rodriguez announced on Wednesday that the Canadian government will cease its annual expenditure of approximately C$10 million ($7.5 million) on Facebook and Instagram advertisements. This decision comes as a result of a disagreement between the Meta-owned platforms and the Canadian government regarding a new legislation concerning the payment of online news publishers.

The government still sees a way forward in resolving the dispute that has led to Meta and Alphabet’s Google announcing that they will end news access to their platforms in Canada, Rodriguez told reporters in Ottawa.

Google and Meta announced their move after Bill C-18, the Online News Act, was passed last month. The government is currently finalizing rules that will require platforms to share advertising revenue before the law comes into effect by the end of this year.

“We cannot continue to pay advertising dollars to Metal when they refuse to pay their fair share to Canadian news organizations,” Rodriguez said.

The legislation comes after Canada’s media industry called for tighter regulation of Internet giants to help news companies recoup financial losses suffered over the years when Facebook and Google gained a larger share of the online advertising market.

“We believe we have a path forward and we are ready to continue the conversation with the platforms,” Rodriguez, who introduced the legislation last year, said.

Metal had no immediate comment. It has previously said that the news has no financial value to the company and that news organizations benefit from sharing their reports on Facebook.

Canadian telecommunications operator Quebecor and Cogeco, which operates radio stations in Quebec, also announced Wednesday that they will stop advertising on Facebook and Instagram because of Meta’s opposition to the new law.