Canadian Facebook and Instagram Users to be Subject to Meta Test Restrictions on Posting

Meta, the parent company of Facebook, had previously hinted at the possibility of preventing Canadians from sharing news content due to the proposed Online Sharing Act. In a recent blog post, the company has now revealed that it will be conducting tests on Facebook and Instagram to restrict certain users and publishers from accessing or sharing news content in Canada. This trial will span several weeks, and a “small percentage” of users will be informed if they attempt to share news content.

“As we have repeatedly shared, the Online News Act is fundamentally flawed legislation that ignores the way our platforms operate, the preferences of the people who use them, and the value we bring as news publishers,” the company wrote.

The ruling Liberal government introduced the bill, also known as Bill C18, earlier this year. Modeled after a similar law in Australia, it aims to force online platforms like Facebook to share revenue with local news organizations. That happened in part because Facebook and Google dominated the online advertising market—the two companies combined accounted for 80 percent of revenue.

Last year, Meta said it was trying to be “open to the possibility that we may have to consider whether we continue to allow news content to be shared in Canada.” The company made the threat after a government panel did not invite meth to a meeting on the legislation. Google also temporarily blocked some Canadian users from seeing news content.

In response, Canadian Heritage Minister Pablo Rodriguez called the tests “invalid,” Reuters reported. “When a big tech company tells us … ‘If you don’t do this or that, I’ll pull the plug’ — that’s a threat. I never did anything because I was afraid of a threat,” he told Reuters. .

Facebook, Google and others eventually passed the Australian law and now pay publishers to post news links with excerpts. Before this could happen, Facebook followed through on its threat to block users from sharing news links in the country. It later overturned the ban after further debate as the government proposed changes that addressed Facebook’s concerns about the value of its platform to publishers.

For now, the test only affects a small number of users and for a limited time. If it follows the same playbook it used in Australia, Meta could ban news sharing for all users in Canada, perhaps as a way to force the government and publishers to the negotiating table.

“As Canada’s heritage minister said, how we choose to comply with the legislation is a business decision we have to make and we have made our choice,” the company wrote. “While these product tests are temporary, we intend to permanently end the availability of news content in Canada following the passage of Bill C-18.”