Summary#

The Online News Act (C‑18) sets rules for large online platforms (like search engines and social media) that make news available in Canada. It aims to fix bargaining power imbalances between platforms and news businesses and to support a sustainable news sector. The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) runs the system, including listing covered platforms, setting a bargaining code of conduct, and enforcing compliance. Most core rules take effect by order-in-council tied to regulations; a 180‑day backstop applies after royal assent (June 22, 2023) for any parts not otherwise brought into force (Coming into Force).

• Platforms covered by the Act must bargain with eligible news businesses and can face final‑offer arbitration if talks fail (Bargaining Process — Steps).
• Platforms can get an exemption if they sign broad agreements that meet fairness and diversity criteria set in the Act and regulations (Exemptions).
• The CRTC must set a code of conduct, prevent unjust discrimination or retaliation by platforms, and can levy administrative monetary penalties up to $10 million for a first violation ($15 million for subsequent) (Administrative Monetary Penalties — Maximum amount).
• Eligible news businesses can bargain alone or in groups; special attention is given to independent local, Indigenous, and official‑language minority outlets (Eligibility; Exemptions).
• The CRTC can recover program costs from platforms through fees and charges; an independent auditor must publish an annual impact report (Financial Provisions; Independent Review).

What it means for you#

• Households

  • You may see changes in how news links and previews appear on major platforms. The Act prohibits unjust discrimination or retaliation against eligible news outlets, but platforms can change product features or stop making news available to avoid coverage or meet criteria (Bill — Discrimination, Preference and Disadvantage; Application; Exemptions).
  • In 2023, at least one major platform chose to stop making Canadian news available rather than participate in the regime. Access to news on that platform remains limited in Canada as of 2024–2025 (public platform statements; Government announcements).

• Workers (journalists and newsroom staff)

  • Newsrooms may receive new funding from platform agreements or arbitration outcomes. The Act requires that an “appropriate portion” of compensation support producing local, regional, and national news (Exemptions).
  • Effects vary by outlet and depend on actual agreements and any exemption orders the CRTC issues. Amounts are not set in the Act and depend on bargaining outcomes (Bargaining Process; Exemptions).

• News businesses

  • To participate, you must be designated “eligible” by the CRTC (e.g., QCJO status under the Income Tax Act, certain community broadcasters, or Indigenous outlets) and meet content and ethics standards (Eligibility).
  • You can initiate bargaining with a listed platform. The process runs up to 90 days of talks, 120 days of mediation if needed, and then 45 days of final‑offer arbitration on monetary terms if still unresolved (Bargaining Process — Steps).
  • You may join or form a group to bargain collectively. Group agreements must be filed with the CRTC and can later cover new members if the agreement allows (Agreements; Competition Act — Covered agreements).
  • The Act shields good‑faith group bargaining and covered agreements from certain Competition Act provisions (Competition Act — Covered agreements; Other agreements).
  • You can complain to the CRTC if a platform unjustly discriminates, gives undue preference, or retaliates. The CRTC can order remedies and penalties (Discrimination, Preference and Disadvantage; Administrative Monetary Penalties).
  • CBC/Radio‑Canada must file an annual report to the CRTC on compensation received and its use when it is party to agreements (Provision of Information — Canadian Broadcasting Corporation).

• Digital platforms (operators of “digital news intermediaries”)

  • If the CRTC lists your service, you must notify the CRTC, follow the bargaining code, and bargain in good faith when approached by eligible news businesses or groups (Application; Code of Conduct; Duty to bargain).
  • You can seek an exemption if your agreements provide fair compensation, support newsroom production, and benefit a diverse range of outlets, including independent local, Indigenous, and official‑language minority media (Exemptions).
  • You must not unjustly discriminate, prefer yourself or others, or impose undue disadvantages on eligible outlets when making Canadian news available (Discrimination, Preference and Disadvantage).
  • You face information‑production orders and potential administrative monetary penalties up to $10 million for a first violation and $15 million for subsequent ones; individuals face lower caps (Administrative Monetary Penalties — Maximum amount).
  • You will be subject to cost‑recovery fees and charges set by regulation to fund CRTC administration and services under the Act (Financial Provisions — Fees for services; Cost recovery).

• Local governments and public bodies

  • No direct mandates. Indirect effects may occur if local outlets receive new funding and expand coverage of municipal and regional issues (Exemptions; Eligibility).

Expenses#

Estimated net federal budget impact: Data unavailable; the Act authorizes full or partial cost recovery from platform operators for CRTC administration.

• No detailed fiscal note is attached to the Act. The bill carries a Royal Recommendation to allow spending, but specific appropriations are not in the text (Preamble — Recommendation).
• The CRTC may set fees for services (complaints, regulatory processes) and broader charges to recover administration costs from platform operators, subject to Treasury Board approval. Total fees/charges must not exceed program costs (Financial Provisions — Fees for services; Cost recovery).
• Administrative monetary penalties, if imposed, are payable to the Receiver General (Administrative Monetary Penalties; Receiver General).

Notes:

• Private payments under agreements or arbitration flow to news businesses, not the federal treasury (Bargaining Process; Agreements).
• Actual CRTC administrative costs and fee schedules depend on regulations and orders. Public dollar amounts are not specified in the Act. Data unavailable.

Proponents' View#

• Restores bargaining balance between very large platforms and Canadian news outlets by requiring good‑faith talks and providing final‑offer arbitration as a backstop (Bargaining Process — Steps; Duty to bargain).
• Delivers real funding for journalism without directing content, by tying exemptions to fair compensation and newsroom support, while protecting freedom of expression and journalistic independence (Exemptions; Freedom of expression; Journalistic independence).
• Supports diversity by requiring benefits to flow to independent local outlets, Indigenous media, and official‑language minority media as a condition of platform exemptions (Exemptions).
• Provides transparency through an independent annual auditor’s report on the total commercial value of agreements and their distribution across outlets (Independent Review).
• Early implementation produced a concrete national contribution from at least one large platform (e.g., $100 million/year under final regulations), suggesting the framework can secure sector‑wide deals at scale (Final Regulations, November 29, 2023).

Opponents' View#

• Risk of reduced public access to news if platforms choose to stop making news available in Canada to avoid coverage, as occurred on at least one major platform in 2023 (Documented platform responses; Government announcements).
• Bargaining outcomes may favor large incumbents; smaller or digital‑native outlets may capture less value despite eligibility, depending on group governance and exemption criteria interpretation (Exemptions; Regulations — Commission).
• Regulatory complexity and compliance costs for the CRTC and platforms; actual administrative burden and timelines depend on future regulations, which adds uncertainty (Financial Provisions; Regulations).
• Final‑offer arbitration covers only monetary terms, not product design or algorithmic placement, which may limit leverage on discoverability concerns (Bargaining Process — Scope of final offer arbitration).
• Confidentiality and data‑sharing rules allow some disclosure to the Minister and Competition Bureau; critics warn of commercial sensitivity risks despite protections and offence provisions (Provision of Information — Confidential information; Offence — disclosure).