Canada unveiled draft rules on Friday for a law to compel internet giants to pay news outlets, saying it was addressing the tech companies’ concerns, but Facebook said it would stick to plans to block news in the country.
Canada said the draft rules, designed to implement the recently-passed Online News Act, would address worries at Alphabet’s GOOGL.O Google and Facebook-parent Meta META.O that they could face an uncapped liability.
“The regulatory process is not equipped to address the fundamentally flawed premise of the Online News Act … today’s proposed regulations will not impact our business decision to end news availability in Canada,” Rachel Curran, Meta Canada’s head of public policy, said in a statement.
Canada’s Online News Act, part of a global trend to make internet giants pay for news, became law in June and is expected to come into effect in December after rules are finalized.
The legislation came after complaints from Canada’s media industry, which wants tighter regulation of tech companies to prevent them from elbowing news businesses out of the online advertising market.
Both Google and Facebook have said the law is unworkable for their businesses, and Meta ended news sharing on its platforms in Canada last month.
A spokesperson for Google said the company was reviewing the proposed regulations “to assess whether they resolve the serious structural issues” with the law.
According to the draft regulations, companies would need to voluntarily negotiate deals with news publishers and pay a portion of their global revenues, based on a set calculation.
The draft proposals are expected to raise C$172 million ($126.6 million) per year from Google and about C$60 million per year from Facebook, a government official said.
Meta’s revenue last year was about $117 billion, or about $320 million a day. Its decision to block news links in Canada has had almost no impact on Canadians’ usage of Facebook, according to data from independent tracking firms.
If companies do not meet a payments threshold through voluntary deals, they may have to go through mandatory bargaining overseen by the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC).
Government officials in a briefing side-stepped questions about what would happen if companies blocked news on their platforms and did not participate in negotiations at all.
“The position of the Canadian government is that in light of that dominant position that they occupy in terms of being that gatekeeper to content, there is a responsibility on their part to come forward and bargain fairly with us,” an official said.
The Canadian regulator responsible said last week that it would start setting up a framework for negotiations between news organizations and internet giants this autumn, with the aim of initiating mandatory bargaining by early 2025.
The draft rules allow for both monetary and non-monetary contributions to news businesses and consideration of pre-existing deals.
Any agreements that Google and Facebook reach must also cover independent local, Indigenous and official language minority community news businesses, according to the draft regulations.
SAINT CATHARINES, Ont. – Saskatchewan’s Jason Ackerman remained undefeated on Wednesday with a 7-4 win over Newfoundland and Labrador’s Trent Skanes at the Canadian mixed curling championship.
After going down 3-1 through four ends, Ackerman (6-0) outscored Skanes (3-3) 6-1 the rest of the way, including three points in the seventh end.
Alberta’s Kurt Alan Balderston also earned a win, defeating New Brunswick’s Charlie Sullivan 9-2 in another matchup in the final draw.
The win improved Balderston’s record to 4-2 and sits in third in Pool B.
The top four teams from each pool will play four more games against the survivors from the other pool. The remaining three teams from the pool will play three more seeding games to help set the rankings for next year’s event.
The championship final is scheduled for Saturday.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 6, 2024.
EDMONTON – Noah Hanifin had a pair of goals as the Vegas Golden Knights won their first road game of the season, coming from behind to shock the Edmonton Oilers 4-2 on Wednesday.
Jack Eichel had a goal and two assists and Mark Stone also scored for the Golden Knights (9-3-1), who have won two in a row and six of their last seven. The Knights entered the game 0-3-1 on the road this year.
Brett Kulak and Zach Hyman replied for the Oilers (6-7-1), who have lost two straight despite getting captain Connor McDavid back from injury earlier than expected for the game.
Adin Hill made 27 saves for Vegas, while Stuart Skinner managed 31 stops for Edmonton.
Takeaways
Golden Knights: With an assist on the Knights’ second goal, William Karlsson has recorded at least a point in all five games he has played this season (two goals, four assists).
Oilers: McDavid was a surprise starter for the Oilers, coming back just nine days after suffering an ankle injury in Columbus and initially being expected to miss two to three weeks. The star forward came into the contest with 11 points (three goals, eight assists) during a six-game point streak versus the Golden Knights, but was held pointless on the night.
Key moment
With just 48.4 seconds left to play, the Golden Knights won a race to the corner and Ivan Barbashev was able to send it out to a hard-charging Hanifin, who sent a shot glove-side that beat Skinner for his second goal of the third period and third of the season.
Key stat
It was Hyman’s third goal in the last four games after the veteran forward went scoreless in his first 10 games this season following a 54-goal campaign last year. Hyman now has five goals in his last six games against Vegas.
Up next
Golden Knights: Head to Seattle to face the Kraken on Friday.
Oilers: Travel to Vancouver on a quick one-game trip to clash with the Canucks on Saturday.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 6, 2024.
The Canadian Institute for Health Information says health-care spending in Canada is projected to reach a new high in 2024.
The annual report released Thursday says total health spending is expected to hit $372 billion, or $9,054 per Canadian.
CIHI’s national analysis predicts expenditures will rise by 5.7 per cent in 2024, compared to 4.5 per cent in 2023 and 1.7 per cent in 2022.
This year’s health spending is estimated to represent 12.4 per cent of Canada’s gross domestic product. Excluding two years of the pandemic, it would be the highest ratio in the country’s history.
While it’s not unusual for health expenditures to outpace economic growth, the report says this could be the case for the next several years due to Canada’s growing population and its aging demographic.
Canada’s per capita spending on health care in 2022 was among the highest in the world, but still less than countries such as the United States and Sweden.
The report notes that the Canadian dental and pharmacare plans could push health-care spending even further as more people who previously couldn’t afford these services start using them.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 7, 2024.
Canadian Press health coverage receives support through a partnership with the Canadian Medical Association. CP is solely responsible for this content.
