Photo: Justin Sullivan Getty Images via Agence France-Presse Google has agreed to pay Canadian news publishers $100 million a year, indexed for inflation, to be exempt from the Online News Act.
Mickey Djuric – The Canadian Press in Ottawa
Published yesterday at 1:39 p.m. Updated yesterday at 1:55 p.m.
- Canada
Google announced Friday that it has chosen an organization to distribute the $100 million the tech giant promised to Canadian media.
The Canadian Journalism Collective (CJC) will ensure that eligible news organizations receive their share of the money.
This collective, a federal non-profit organization created for this purpose, is founded by a group of independent publishers and distributors.
The steering committee is made up of 12 independent media outlets that represent French-language, community and Indigenous news, as well as publications specifically representing Blacks and minorities.
On These organizations include Pivot, The Resolve, IndigiNews, Village Media and the Canadian Association of Community Television Users and Stations.
Exemption
Google has agreed to pay Canadian news publishers $100 million a year, indexed for inflation, to be exempt from the Privacy Act. online news, which requires tech companies to enter into agreements with news publishers.
The CJC is committed to distributing the money in a “fair, transparent and inclusive manner,” Sadia Zaman, independent director of the collective's board, said in a statement.
“We look forward to working with the full diversity of the Canadian information ecosystem, including traditional print and broadcast organizations, as well as independent local publishers, including those serving Indigenous communities , black and racialized as well as francophone communities. »
The committee plans to establish its governance structure in the coming weeks.
We don't know not exactly when the media companies will get their share of the pie.
The payment is conditional on Google officially receiving an exemption from the Broadcasting and Communications Council Canadian Telecommunications (CRTC).
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“We hope the next steps will be taken as quickly as possible so that Canadian publishers and journalists can soon begin receiving the benefits of this new contribution model,” Google said on its site Friday. Internet.
Earlier this year, Google put out a call to news organizations interested in receiving compensation under the Online News Act, and about 1,500 of them raised their hands.
The collective will review all press publishers who responded to the call and distribute funds to those who meet the criteria.
Maximum 37 million for Radio-Canada and televisions
To receive a share of this windfall, companies must be designated as qualified Canadian journalistic organizations under of the Income Tax Act. They must also produce news content of public interest, operate in Canada and employ at least two journalists.
The money will be paid in proportion to the number of full-time journalists employed. Small print and digital media outlets can expect to receive about $17,000 per journalist they employ, according to a Canadian Heritage Department official.
The Liberal Government has already capped the amount of money the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation and other broadcasters can receive.
CBC/Radio-Canada will get no more than $7 million dollars, and a maximum amount of $30 million will be reserved for other broadcasters.
The remaining $63 million will be shared among other eligible media, such as newspapers and digital platforms.