Canadian news publishers and broadcasters represented by News Media Canada, the Canadian Association of Broadcasters and CBC/Radio-Canada filed an application with the Competition Bureau of Canada Tuesday requesting an investigation into Meta’s conduct relating to the implementation of the Online News Act. The complaint centers around Meta’s recent decision to block news content from its platforms in Canada, raising concerns about the company’s dominant position in the online advertising market.
The applicants allege that Meta, which owns Facebook and Instagram, has abused its dominant position in the social media market in response to the passage of the Online News Act, which mandates that tech giants such as Google and Meta provide compensation to news outlets for sharing links to their pages. The new legislation aims to support Canada’s news industry by requiring digital platforms like Meta to compensate news organizations for the use of their content. In response, Meta announced it would be ceasing the availability of news content on its platforms in Canada. The applicants argue that this amounts to anti-competitive conduct designed to impair the ability of Canadian news organizations to compete effectively in both the news publishing and online advertising markets.
By blocking Canadian news content, the complaint asserts Meta is looking to discipline news companies, reduce their visibility and gain leverage in negotiations—ultimately strengthening its already dominant position in online advertising. If the application is successful, the ensuing investigation could result in an order by the Competition Bureau prohibiting Meta’s news blocking as an abuse of market dominance under Section 79 of the Competition Act, which aims to maintain competitive conditions and prevent anti-competitive acts that substantially lessen competition in a market.
The heads of the National Association of Broadcasters and the Canadian Association of Broadcasters criticized Meta’s decision to block access to news on its platforms in Canada. In a joint statement, the associations decried Meta’s “retaliatory tactics” and described the tech giant, worth nearly $1 trillion, as demonstrating “monopolistic dominance” over online advertising with the news blocking. They urged lawmakers not to “reward” Meta’s “coercive behavior” and called for legislation enabling fair negotiations over the use of news content on dominant platforms.
