Whatever the Liberals do these days—even if it is groundbreaking, and puts $100-million into the creation of domestic news stories—they cannot win.

By Sheila Copps
First published in The Hill Times on December 4, 2023.

OTTAWA—The government’s Google announcement last week should have been met with applause all the way around.

Canada has always been a leader in new ideas and instruments to protect culture, and obviously the survival of local news is a key to spawning more Canadian content.

But whatever the Liberals do these days—even if it is groundbreaking, and puts $100-million into the creation of domestic news stories—they cannot win.

Pundits variously described the agreement with Google as “dodging a bullet,” a self-inflicted wound, and another cock-up by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. Talk about kicking a guy while he is down.

We know the numbers for the Liberals look grim. According to the latest polls, they are running neck and neck with the New Democratic Party. But how that unpopularity can be expanded to include the government’s Google agreement is pretty hard to swallow.

The Canadian government has followed the lead of Australia, which was the first country in the world to regulate the social media landscape in an attempt to secure funding for domestic content.

This is one area where Canadians have a fair bit of experience, and the decision to take on Google, Meta, and the other social media behemoths was a courageous one. Some said the Liberals should just wait to take their lead from the G7 or the OECD. That advice would have meant no action, as the Americans are usually opposed to public intrusion into what they consider their media space.

The European Union has been making its own inroads into taking on big tech. The EU fought Apple in a decision last year as it moved to standardize chargers for smartphones and tablets sold in Europe. Canada announced a similar decision in the last budget, and the European market of 450 million people will receive a standard USB Type-C charging port by the end of next year.

As Europe takes on Apple, Canada goes for Google. One jaded journalist went so far as to claim the Canadian government was involved in a “shakedown.”

Globe and Mail columnist Andrew Coyne tweeted that there was “no actual legal, logical or moral case for forcing Google to underwrite the Canadian media.” He called the agreement “strictly opportunistic: 1) Google has a lot of money. 2) We want some. 3) Make them give it to us.”

In fact, there is plenty of precedent for content transmitters to chip in on Canadian story development. That model has been used in the television world since the private cable industry was required to establish a fund to support Canadian content.

Their fund morphed into partnership with the government via the Canadian Television Fund, and then into the Canada Media Fund, which currently invests $366-million annually into media production. That investment triggers $1.7-billion in industry activity in Canada, providing employment for more than 244,000 people.

As television and streaming collided through the introduction of internet media content creation, it made sense for the Canadian government to require new media players to do their part in the creation of content. As Google traffics in the news, it can also help to pay for local news creation, using a tried-and-true model that will now likely be copied by dozens of other jurisdictions around the world.

The Liberal government should be congratulated as a leader in public policy on the issue of social media transmission. Instead, even though last week’s announcement will assist in the survival of local media outlets, there were no kudos for Trudeau.

Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre has already promised to trash the Google deal with the same vision he uses to promise defunding of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation.

The Google story was not big news across the country as it was an inside-the-beltway negotiation, but the outcome of this new investment could be critical for the survival of local media in the next decade.

Most people may not care about the intricacies of public policy when it comes to the creation of Canadian content. But without government leadership, the chance to grow a dying news industry is slim to none.

Last week’s announcement should have been met with at least one day of positive coverage. But when the media decides that it is time for a change at the top, nothing—not even a trailblazing move to save media—will kill the main story.

The appetite for political change is fuelled by negative Trudeau stories on a daily basis.

That is not going to change.

Sheila Copps is a former Jean Chrétien-era cabinet minister and a former deputy prime minister. Follow her on Twitter at @Sheila_Copps.

By SHEILA COPPS

First published on Monday, October 2, 2017 in The Hill Times.

OTTAWA—Canada’s culture wars will never end. Nor should they.

Heritage Minister Melanie Joly struck the right tone Thursday when she set out a plan to increase content on multiple platforms without imposing new taxes.

The last thing the Liberals need these days is to open another tax front while Finance Minister Bill Morneau is busy garnering front-page headlines on that file.

And Netflix has been embraced by Canadians as their go-to platform of choice when it comes to sassy, critically acclaimed cinema that crosses all genres. The newly announced deal will actually put more Canadian bums in virtual seats, which is ultimately the goal of any culture minister.

Critics argue that Canada should follow the French and British example by introducing on tax on the international streaming giant.

Some say $500-million over five years is peanuts when you look at the $6-billion annual world production budget of Netflix.

But Joly’s partnership will vault the company to a place of prominence in Canadian cultural investments. And the initial dollars could grow once Netflix establishes a beachhead in Canada.

Anytime a politician can increase cultural funding agreement by $100-million a year, it is a win-win for all concerned.

After all, the origins of the Canada Media Fund were voluntary. The original Canada Television Fund, was established by the government in concert with funding from cable and satellite providers. It replaced the cable fund, which voluntarily financed additional television content in return for a distribution monopoly.

Over time, demand for content creation grew and when the Liberal government created the CTF back in the nineties, it topped up growing private-sector funding with $100-million in public monies.

Meanwhile, new satellite entrants negotiated various “voluntary” contributions in return for licence approvals. The Bell Fund is celebrating its 20th anniversary this year and has contributed $200-million in financing for Canadian media productions.

Netflix was not the first content provider to decide to make voluntary contributions nor will it be the last. At the end of the day, the carrot is always better than the stick and government always has the option to tax,

The Netflix decision to set up a production facility in Canada will also mean more Canadians will find jobs on the creative side, which is certainly a plus for our economy.

The beauty of Canada’s voluntary contribution model, is that it enhances the opportunity for multiple project funding sources, with most of the money going to small and medium-sized producers focused on Canadian content in costly areas of television like drama, and documentaries.

Unlike the tax credit system, which is calculated by how many Canadians are actually employed in a production, the Media Fund focuses on supporting content creation for multiple platforms and targeted communities.

To date, the fund has financed 108 aboriginal productions, and also works to support regional and official language minority language filmmakers.

In its heyday, the previous fund was the single most successful job generator of any government program. For every dollar invested by the taxpayer, $7 of additional creative sector funding followed, and cultural jobs rapidly became the fastest growing job sector for young people.

Joly has widened her reach and the partnership with Netflix will certainly be used as an example to get other international media giants, including Google and Facebook to the Canadian cultural table.

The establishment of a new Creative Industries Council which Joly will co-chair with Innovation Minister Navdeep Bains, will focus more government attention on the value of creative investments.

Last week’s announcement may not be embraced by all, but it is a far cry from the days of the previous Conservative government when the dirty word of Canadian culture did not pass the budgetary lips of a single finance minister for years.

The minister’s promised retooling of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation is also long overdue. During Tory times, at least one board member simply refused to even attend meetings and most were chosen to downsize the place.

In the world of international cultural content, it is about time the CBC broadened its mandate, and worked directly with Radio Canada International to establish a Canadian presence on the world stage.

The British Broadcasting Corporation has spread its wings worldwide. There is no reason the CBC cannot do the same.

And with the first stop on the minister’s cultural roadmap already logged, the timing could not be better.

CBC and Netflix could be a powerful Cancon combination. And creators will welcome an international Netflix platform.

Sheila Copps is a former Jean Chrétien-era cabinet minister and a former deputy prime minister. Follow her on Twitter at @Sheila_Copps.