Bill C-11: Canadian Heritage provides final policy direction to the CRTC

Culture Minister Pascale St-Onge has issued The final political direction to the Canadian Radio-Television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) to regulate Bill C-11after it launched a public process in June.

Legislation forcing streaming services like Netflix, Disney Plus and YouTube to pay to support Canadian media content has faced resistance for years, largely due to concerns it will restrict user-generated content.

However, the final policy direction shows that social media and digital creators, including podcasts and video games, are in fact not subject to the law.

The Government of Canada has given the CRTC two years to conduct key consultations and hearings, define Canadian content, engage with Indigenous peoples and equity groups, ensure regulations are fair and flexible, and more.

The first hearing, scheduled to begin on November 20 and last three weeks, will consider the contributions that online streaming services must make to support Canadian and Indigenous content.

“Canadians can expect open, transparent and respectful consultations that result in timely decisions,” the CRTC said a statement.

In an interview with The Globe and MailSt-Onge asserted that “things are moving quickly and that time is of the essence,” adding that the Canadian broadcasting system and the people who work within it need immediate help.

Michael Geist, a professor of internet law at the University of Ottawa, disagreed a blog post that the Bill C-11 process would never move quickly because the government had left so much to the regulatory processes.

“Despite numerous efforts to make the bill more specific, the government rejected most of the amendments, leaving the CRTC to sort things out.”

St-Onge also accused the Conservatives of “scaremongering,” spreading disinformation about the bill and delaying its passage.

The Conservatives vowed to repeal the law if they form a government, reiterating censorship and intrusion concerns.