Google to Remove News Links in Canada Over Bill C-18

Google has announced it will remove links to Canadian news on its platforms in Canada due to the recently passed Bill C-18, which forces tech giants to compensate media outlets for content they share online.

“Bill C-18 has become law and remains unworkable. The Government has not given us reason to believe that the regulatory process will be able to resolve structural issues with the legislation,” said Kent Walker, Google’s president of global affairs, in a June 29 release.

Walker said as a result Google will be “removing links to Canadian news from our Search, News, and Discover products and will no longer be able to operate Google News Showcase in Canada,” when the new law comes into effect in December.

The Online News Act, which passed on June 21, requires that online platforms and digital news intermediaries like Google and Meta negotiate deals with and pay Canadian media outlets for any of the news and information linked on their platforms.

Google had previously confirmed that Canadians would lose access to news on its social media sites due to Bill C-18.

More to come…