Google announced today that it won’t pull links to Canadian news outlets after all, thanks to an agreement with the government of Canada over the contentious Online News Act or Bill C-18. Google and Alphabet president of global affairs Kent Walker published a statement saying that “following extensive discussions, we are pleased that the Government of Canada has committed to addressing our core issues with Bill C-18,” a rule designed to make large web platforms pay news outlets for using their content. While the exact terms have yet to be published, Walker says the government addressed Google’s previous concerns about creating “uncapped financial liability” for linking to articles, and a report indicates it will pay millions of dollars to publishers as part of the deal.
Due to this development, Walker explains, “as we collaborate with the government through the forthcoming exemption process outlined in the regulations, we will persist in directing valuable traffic to Canadian publishers.” This marks a departure from the initial strategy, which would have involved excluding these links from Google Search, News, and Discover. Google announced today
Walker details that the negotiations encompassed the creation of a streamlined exemption process designed for companies meeting a “clear commitment threshold.” According to a CBC News report, this threshold is rumored to involve an approximately $100 million annual payout to local news companies, which is less than the initially sought $172 million by federal officials. The final regulatory language of Bill C-18 is expected to allow Google to negotiate with a single group representing media organizations, streamlining the process and reducing the need to engage with numerous individual outlets. In response to the agreement, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was quoted by CBC as saying, “After months of holding strong, of demonstrating our commitment to local journalism, to strong independent journalists getting paid for their work … Google has agreed to properly support journalists, including local journalism.”