Online streaming services operating in Canada will be required to contribute five per cent of their Canadian revenues to support the domestic broadcasting system, the country’s telecoms regulator said on Tuesday.
In a briefing, officials from the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) said the money would be used to boost funding for local and Indigenous broadcasting.
“Today’s decision will help ensure that online streaming services make meaningful contributions to Canadian and Indigenous content,” wrote CRTC chief executive and chair Vicky Eatrides.
Funding will also be directed to French-language content and content created by official language minority communities, as well as content created by equity-deserving groups and Canadians of diverse backgrounds.
The measure, which will start in the 2024-2025 broadcasting year, would raise roughly $200 million annually, CRTC officials said.
The release also said that online streaming services will “have some flexibility” to send their revenues to support Canadian television directly.
More to come.