Liberals and Bloc denounce Meta ad campaign against Bill C-18

The Liberals and Bloc criticize Meta for its advertising campaign challenging Bill C-18. This law aims to force web giants to compensate the media for sharing their articles and reports online.

On Thursday, Heritage Minister Pablo Rodriguez criticized the approach of the digital company, which is prepared to invest in advertising and modify its platforms to exclude news content in Canada. In his view, the company does not respect Canadian law and refuses to pay its fair share.

"It shows how irresponsible she is, especially when she's making billions of dollars from Canadian users," Rodriguez pointed out.

Bloc MP Martin Champoux also spoke out on the subject, criticizing the company for its opposition to Bill C-18 and accusing it of scorning the media by refusing to negotiate agreements.

These statements come as Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, confirms that it is airing new commercials concerning Bill C-18. Cogeco, however, has refused to run the Meta ad. Diane Patenaude, Cogeco's marketing director, said the company preferred not to use its advertising time to broadcast a message opposed to Canadian laws.

In response to Bill C-18, Meta has blocked Canadians' access to news content on its platforms. This strategy follows the announcement by various governments, media and companies that they would stop buying advertising space on Instagram and Facebook.

In an audio "announcement", Meta argues that the Online News Act wrongly assumes that social media companies unfairly profit from news content shared on their platforms. According to Meta, media outlets voluntarily share content on social media to increase their audience and improve their bottom line.

Bill C-18, passed at the end of June, requires companies like Meta and Google to enter into "fair" compensation agreements with various media outlets for the sharing of news content. In the absence of agreements, a negotiation framework will be imposed on digital companies next December.

This three-stage process offers a period during which the "web giants" can voluntarily enter into agreements with various players, including local media, to be exempted from this framework. Arbitration is the final element of this negotiating framework.

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