Google has announced that it will remove links to Canadian news from search results and other related products, following in the footsteps of Meta. The company will be removing the links when the law that requires internet companies to pay publishers “for simply showing links to news” for free.
Canada has enacted a new law called Bill C-18, popularly known as the Online News Act, that requires two companies (Meta and Google) to pay publishers for showing links to news in their products. Google has argued that this is “the wrong approach to supporting journalism in Canada.”
“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,” the company announced.
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The law is expected to come into effect in six months, a report by news agency Reuters 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.”
Google against “link tax”
The company noted that it already pays to support Canadian journalism through several programs and partnerships – and was willing to do more. It said that as part of Google News Showcase program, the company has negotiated agreements with over 150 news publications across the North American country.
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FILE PHOTO: The Google logo is pictured at the entrance to the Google offices in London, Britain January 18, 2019. REUTERS/Hannah McKay/File Photo
According to Google, paying publishers for showing links to their news will create “uncertainty for our products and expose us to uncapped financial liability simply for facilitating access to news.”
Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, also announced earlier this month that news availability will be ended on both of its social media platforms prior to the Online News Act (Bill C-18) taking effect.
The company also ran tests on both platforms limiting some users and publishers from viewing or sharing some news content in Canada.
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