In response to Canada’s newly passed Online News Act, Meta has decided to take a drastic step, blocking access to news on Facebook and Instagram for Canadian users. The legislation mandates that tech giants must compensate news publishers for their content, sparking a contentious debate on the global stage.

As of Tuesday, Meta began restricting Canadians from viewing news links and content on their platforms, as stated in an official announcement. The social media giant also revealed that Canadian users would no longer be able to share articles on Facebook and Instagram. Even news posted on foreign sites will be inaccessible to Canadian users, IANS reported.

The Online News Act, which bears similarities to legislation previously introduced in Australia, aims to support Canada’s struggling news sector. With a decline in advertising revenue and the closure of hundreds of publications over the past decade, the Canadian government seeks to level the playing field by requiring digital giants to establish fair commercial deals with local news outlets for the content shared on their platforms. Failure to comply could result in binding arbitration.

According to a parliamentary budget watchdog report from October 2022, Canadian newspapers could receive approximately Can$330 million (US$250 million) annually from digital platforms under the new law.

However, Meta strongly opposes the legislation, contending that the premise behind it is flawed. The company argues that it doesn’t unfairly benefit from news content shared on its platforms, but rather, news outlets use Facebook and Instagram to attract readers and bolster their own revenues. Meta claims that users don’t primarily visit their platforms for news content.

Heritage Minister Pascale St-Onge criticized Meta’s move as “irresponsible,” emphasizing that the digital giants currently receive a staggering 80 percent of all online advertising revenues in Canada, leaving news publishers struggling to survive. St-Onge stresses the significance of a free and independent press for the nation’s democracy and notes that other countries are contemplating similar legislation to address similar challenges.

The Canadian Broadcasting Company (CBC), Canada’s public broadcaster, condemned Meta’s action, calling it an abuse of market power. They urged Meta to restore Canadians’ access to news. Nevertheless, some Canadian media outlets have taken a more nuanced stance on the matter.