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Culture Minister Marc Miller pushed back on criticisms from stakeholders in the country’s film and television sector who have accused Ottawa of capitulating to U.S. tech interests over the Online Streaming Act. Adrian Wyld/The Canadian Press
Frustrations regarding lengthy regulatory timelines and concerns over affordability for Canadians are the driving forces behind Ottawa’s move to roll back years-in-the-making decisions by the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission regarding the Online Streaming Act, says Marc Miller, Minister of Canadian Identity and Culture.
In an exclusive interview with The Globe and Mail Sunday in Banff, Alta., where Mr. Miller was attending the Banff World Media Festival, the minister pushed back on criticisms from stakeholders in the country’s film and television sector who have accused Ottawa of capitulating to U.S. tech interests over the Online Streaming Act as trade tensions persist with the Trump administration.
“Look, well, it’s wrong. There isn’t a chance that we won’t stand up and make sure that Canadian culture gets supported,” Mr. Miller said. “I certainly do understand the frustration, because there’s been a lot of blood shed and battles fought on these grounds. ... But you can have all the aspirations in the world to make sure that people are doing what they’re supposed to be doing, but if that doesn’t work, we have to act. And this reflects my impatience, and the Prime Minister’s impatience, to make sure that we are creating some stability in the system.”
Earlier this month, Ottawa ordered the CRTC to review its May policy regarding the Online Streaming Act (or Bill C-11), which would have tripled the contributions of foreign-owned streamers toward the production of domestic content, including local news, from 5 per cent to 15 per cent of their Canadian revenues. In 2024, MPA-Canada, which represents the interests of such major Hollywood outfits as Disney, Netflix and Paramount, launched a legal challenge to the CRTC decision, with the case still tied up in the courts.
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Upon learning of the abrupt shift, Warren P. Sonoda, president of the Directors Guild of Canada, said that “the entire industry has spent years participating in the implementation of the Online Streaming Act, with the understanding that major global streaming platforms benefiting from operating in Canada would finally be required to contribute fairly and consistently to Canada’s broadcasting system.”
Meanwhile, Kyle Irving, chair of the Canadian Media Producers Association, said that he was concerned Ottawa “has sold out Canadian culture.”
“For the last 10 years we’ve been trying to get to a spot that culminated with the passage of C-11 in 2023 to make sure that people were paying their fair share. I don’t fault people for having that opinion,” Mr. Miller told The Globe. “Respect to the CRTC, but they have been slow in some of their decision-making, which has contributed to, frankly, the frustration.”
Ottawa’s plan to help mend that frustration will come from an annual injection of $600-million to support Canada’s audio and audiovisual sectors. Details of this new taxpayer-sourced funding are still to come, though Mr. Miller confirmed that local news and niche broadcasters will be included.
“There are three broad categories, so one of them may need some work. I can’t give a definitive number. But the players in the system have been telling us that some things are fair and some things are unfair,” Mr. Miller said. “This is an opportunity to actually adjust a little on the fly. I want to get this out as quickly as possible.”
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Earlier this month, Ottawa ordered the CRTC to review its May policy regarding the Online Streaming Act, which would have tripled the contributions of foreign-owned streamers toward the production of domestic content, including local news, from 5 per cent to 15 per cent of their Canadian revenues. Giordano Ciampini/The Canadian Press
As to whether public investment can adequately replace long-term structural obligations – and what might happen to the annual tranche of $600-million with a change in government – Mr. Miller countered that any new government could amend a law, albeit not as easily as it could cancel a direct contribution to the cultural sector.
“Can a government or public funder alone completely replace an ecosystem that is in profound transformation? The answer is no,” he added.
The Department of Canadian Heritage will also continue to pursue an undefined rate of domestic revenues from streamers toward Canadian programming, though likely not nearly the amounts currently required in such markets as France (which compels foreign-owned streamers to invest 20 to 25 per cent of local revenues in French film and TV production), Italy (16 per cent) and Germany (which is currently seeking 8 per cent).
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