The public outcry over the Online Streaming Act is largely in the rear view mirror as the law is now at the CRTC facing years of regulatory and court battles. Last week, the Commission issued its first major ruling on mandated payments by Internet streaming services, a decision that, as I’ve written and discussed, is likely to increase consumer costs with limited benefit to the film and television sector. While Bill C-11 may ultimately become associated with the consumer implications and the CRTC’s failure to consider the market effects, for many Canadians the bill is inextricably linked to fears of user content regulation. For the better part of two years, a steady parade of government ministers and MPs insisted that user content regulation was out of the bill even as a plain reading made it clear that it was in. This week Ministry of Justice lawyers provided their take, arguing on behalf of the government in a court filing that “the Act does allow for regulation of user-uploaded programs on social media services.”
Archive for June 13th, 2024

Law Bytes
Episode 226: Richard Gold on Why Canada Should Target U.S. Patents To Help Counter Tariff Trade Pressure
byMichael Geist

February 10, 2025
Michael Geist
February 3, 2025
Michael Geist
January 27, 2025
Michael Geist
December 9, 2024
Michael Geist
Search Results placeholder
Recent Posts
Why the Trump Trade Threats Will Place Canadian Digital, Cultural, and AI Policy Under Pressure
The Law Bytes Podcast, Episode 226: Richard Gold on Why Canada Should Target U.S. Patents To Help Counter Tariff Trade Pressure
The Law Bytes Podcast, Episode 225: How Canada Can Leverage Digital Policy to Retaliate Against Trump’s Tariffs
The Law Bytes Podcast, Episode 224: Why Prorogation and Donald Trump Spell the End of an Era in Canadian Digital Policy
Why Years of Canadian Digital Policy Is Either Dead (Prorogation) or Likely to Die (Trump)