Google announced today that it will not ultimately remove links to Canadian news media due to an agreement with the Canadian government over the controversial Online News Act, or Bill C-18. Kent Walker, president of global affairs for Google and Alphabet, issued a statement saying, "After extensive discussions, we are pleased that the Canadian government has committed to addressing our core issues through Bill C-18," which is a rule designed to allow large online platforms to pay news media to use their content.
While specific terms have not been announced, Walker said the government addressed Google's previous concerns about creating "unlimited financial liability" for linking to articles, with a report suggesting it would pay publishers millions of dollars as part of the deal.
As a result, "While we work with the government through the exemption process in accordance with upcoming regulations, we will continue to provide valuable traffic to Canadian publishers," Walker said. The previous plan would have excluded these links from Google Search, News, and Discover.
Walker wrote that the talks include developing a streamlined exemption process for companies that meet a "clear commitment threshold" — which CBC News reported would involve paying local news companies about $100 million per year, down from the $172 million originally sought by federal officials.
Bill C-18's final regulatory language would allow Google to negotiate with a single group representing media organizations, limiting its need to work with numerous individual outlets. "After months of standing by and demonstrating our commitment to local journalism and to paying strong independent journalists for their work...Google has agreed to appropriately support journalists, including local journalism," the outlet quoted Prime Minister Justin Trudeau as telling reporters.
Google and Meta are two of the main legislative targets of the Online News Act, which passed earlier this year and took effect in December. The rule, which Google calls a "link tax," is one of several attempts across the country to divert money from big tech companies to news organizations. While both companies opposed the rule, Meta took a tougher stance, removing news section entries from Facebook and Instagram in Canada, while Google said it was making a last-ditch attempt to negotiate.
Meta did not immediately respond to a request for comment on whether it would update its position based on Google's success in the negotiations, but the companies struck deals with Australian news media in 2021 in response to similar laws in Australia.