Google announced Friday that it had paid Can$100 million to Canadian news outlets to use their content on its platform, as part of an agreement with the government aimed at addressing the decline in advertising revenues for traditional news organizations.
In 2023, Canada passed the Online News Act, aligning itself with countries like Australia and several European nations that have established policies requiring tech platforms to compensate struggling news publishers.
Google and Meta, which together control around 80% of all advertising revenue in Canada, had been accused of diverting advertising dollars from traditional news organizations while utilizing news content without compensation.
The funds from Google, totaling US$69 million, were transferred to the Canadian Journalism Collective, a non-profit set up to distribute the money, as confirmed by a spokesperson for the tech giant.
Google also confirmed to AFP that it plans to continue this arrangement, with another payment expected by the end of 2025.
Paul Deegan, president of News Media Canada, an organization representing major publishers and broadcasters, described the deal as “far superior” to similar agreements in other regions. He noted that Canadian news organizations are expected to receive up to Can$20,000 per journalist, providing much-needed support to enable them to produce high-quality coverage of democratic institutions, while Google benefits from the fact-based, fact-checked content created by journalists.
The Canadian act aims to support the local news sector, which has seen numerous publications close and advertising dollars shift away in the past decade.
Meta’s Facebook and Instagram opted to block news content in Canada to avoid paying media companies. Google had initially considered doing the same but ultimately reached this funding agreement, which was approved by Canada’s broadcast regulator in October.
Under the terms of the deal, broadcasters will receive 30% of the funds, while the remaining amount will be distributed among news publishers. Google had also made a similar agreement with the U.S. state of California last year to help sustain local news organizations.
