Ottawa suspends advertising on Facebook, Instagram in wake of Bill C-18

Open this photo in gallery:Attendees visit the Meta booth at the Game Developers Conference 2023 in San Francisco on March 22Jeff Chiu/The Associated PressThe federal government is suspending all advertising on Meta platforms – including Facebook and Instagram – over the company’s plans to block Canadian news on its platforms in response to Ottawa’s Online News Act.The decision was announced shortly after Quebecor Inc. said it was ceasing advertising with Meta for the same reason.Canadian Heritage Minister Pablo Rodriguez announced the decision Wednesday at a news conference in Ottawa with NDP heritage critic Peter Julian and Bloc Québécois heritage critic Martin Champoux.Parliament approved the act, known as Bill C-18, last month and the measures are scheduled to take effect within six months after the drafting of regulatory details. The legislation outlines a framework in which large platforms – specifically Google and Facebook – will be required to reach compensation agreements with publishers for the use of news on their sites.Both companies have said the bill as approved is unworkable. Google announced on June 29 that it intends to block Canadian news on its platform, but is continuing to participate in the regulatory process.Meta had previously said it will block access
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