CRTC Grants Google Exemption from Online News Act for Five Years, Requires $100M Payment to News Outlets

October 28, 2024 TruthUSA

The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission has granted Google a five-year exemption from the Online News Act, ordering it to pay $100 million to Canadian news outlets within 60 days.

Last year, Google agreed to pay Canadian news publishers $100 million annually to avoid the law that requires tech companies to make deals with news publishers.

Google has assigned the Canadian Journalism Collective the task of distributing the funds to news outlets.

The CRTC believes Google has satisfied the exemption criteria but has imposed additional conditions, including allowing more news organizations to join the collective.

News Media Canada, representing numerous publishers, has raised concerns about a lack of essential information regarding the Canadian Journalism Collective, such as its governance and payment distribution methods.

In July, the Canadian Journalism Collective submitted its governance structure plans to the CRTC.