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Meta will block news for some users in Canada as it seeks to deter the country’s government from passing a bill that would force online groups to pay publishers and broadcasters for carrying their content.
The parent company of Facebook and Instagram said on Friday that it would begin tests on both platforms that would limit “a small percentage” of users in Canada from viewing, posting or sharing news.
The move is a show of power as Ottawa prepares to pass its Online News Act, a bill that would force big tech groups to negotiate deals with Canadian media publishers and broadcasters either privately or through collective bargaining. The proposed law would compel internet platforms such as Facebook and Google to enter mandatory arbitration if an agreement cannot be reached.
Tensions between Meta and the Canadian government have already flared after the company’s president of global affairs Nick Clegg in May threatened to block news in the region altogether if the law is passed, which is expected by the end of the month.
Meta said on Friday that the test would allow it to prepare for that eventuality. “Randomised tests will help us build an effective product solution to end news availability in Canada”, Meta wrote, adding that the tests would run for several weeks, starting in the coming days.
“We have made our choice,” it added. “While these product tests are temporary, we intend to end the availability of news content in Canada permanently following the passage of Bill C-18.”
“The fact that Facebook is still refusing to work with Canadians shows how deeply irresponsible and out of touch they are,” Pablo Rodriguez, the minister for Canadian heritage, wrote on Twitter on Friday. “Once again this is a disappointing move from big tech and Canadians will not be intimidated by these tactics.”
Meta’s decision follows a similar move by Google earlier this year when it turned off news in its search engine for a couple of weeks for a small portion — less than 4 per cent — of Canadian users. Prime minister Justin Trudeau labelled the decision a “terrible mistake” by Google.
“They are playing games, frankly,” said Paul Deegan, chief executive of trade association News Media Canada, of Google’s tactics.
Meta faced a backlash in early 2021 when it enacted a temporary news blackout in response to a similar bill in Australia, causing controversy as the pages of certain government health organisations and emergency services were also blocked.
The Canada bill has been touted by lawmakers as a way to level the playing field between big tech giants and the shrinking digital media industry, handing more power in particular to smaller local news players.
Meta claims its apps drive engagement to news publishers, not the other way around. It argues that in Canada, the Facebook feed sent more than 1.9bn clicks in the 12 months to April 2022, “free marketing” worth more than $230mn.
In May, Clegg pulled out of a hearing at the Canadian parliament’s Heritage Committee, stating it had originally been entitled “The Response of Companies in the Information Technology Sector to Bill C-18”, but had been changed last minute to “Tech Giants’ Current and Ongoing Use of Intimidation and Subversion Tactics to Evade Regulation in Canada and Across the World”.
The company has suggested amendments to the bill, including one which would remove the sharing of hyperlinks from its scope. Hyperlinks account for some 90 per cent of the news posted on Meta, meaning the legislation’s impact would be seriously diluted were the amendment passed.
“For someone with a hard paywall, you can get to the point where you are gutting the bill,” Deegan said. “Currently it’s reasonable and fair and balanced.”
Jason Kint, chief executive of Digital Content Next, warned that any news blackout could hurt Meta’s advertising business.
“For a company that for years has been presenting themselves as caring about information integrity and misinformation and harms that comes for it, they’re literally going to be blocking credible news from the feed and leaving it to user generated content,” he said.
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