(Ottawa) Heritage Minister Pablo Rodriguez says the government has reached “a good compromise” by accepting certain amendments proposed by the Senate to its Bill C-11 on streaming platforms, but rejecting “those who could create a pass for some”.
“It means that all commercial content must be included, whether it is on one platform or another. So I think that by moving forward like this, we take into account the needs, the comments of everyone in a certain way and we come to support the music sector, ”he said Wednesday before go to the Liberal caucus meeting.
He thus explained the Liberals’ decision to set aside the changes desired by the senators to circumscribe what type of content the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) could regulate or not by discretionary power.
Bill C-11 seeks to modernize the Broadcasting Act to integrate internet broadcasting platforms such as YouTube, Spotify and Disney+. The Trudeau government wants to ensure better “discoverability” of Canadian content.
The Senate has completed its study of the bill and sent it back with its amendments to the House of Commons for the continuation of the legislative process.
In a motion on the order paper, the government indicates that it wishes to send a message to the Senate indicating which amendments “The House” refuses. MEPs will first be called upon to debate the issue on Wednesday, then to vote at a time yet to be determined.
One of the Upper House amendments rejected by the government was intended to respond to the concerns of content creators that users of the platforms are limited or bullied in what they can share there. The senators wanted to reassure several witnesses heard during the examination of the bill by specifying that the power of the CRTC, if exercised, could only target professional content and not amateur content, for example.
“The amendment we propose aims to focus Article 4.2 on the intended target, professional music, without unduly restricting the latitude of the CRTC. […] This actually means that YouTubers, amateur videos or any other content not associated with professional music are not targeted by Bill C-11, ”explained Quebec Senator Julie Miville-Dechêne in presenting this jointly developed amendment. with his colleague from Alberta, Paula Simons.
In an interview with The Canadian Press, Mr.me Miville-Dechêne said she was “disappointed” with the rejection of this amendment, “which was intended as a form of compromise”.
“We studied this bill at length, we saw a way to clarify a few sentences so that people who read the bill are reassured. That counts, that too, ”she summed up.
The senator emphasized that she supports the piece of legislation and that she does not believe that it would have a “censorship” effect or interfere with freedom of expression. This does not prevent the need for “clarifications” in the legislative text, she believes.
“I think the concerns of all these new creators making a living on YouTube who saw Bill C-11 as a threat to their livelihoods had to be taken into account. »
The senator does not advance on the possibility that we are witnessing a legislative “ping-pong” between the House of Commons and the Senate which would delay the adoption of the bill.
“There are 80% of senators right now who are independents, so we will have to see. I think everyone is going to think about that, read the amendments, think about what they’re going to do, but I wouldn’t dare to predict what’s going to happen,” Ms.me Miville-Dechene.
Liberal House Leader Mark Holland, meanwhile, dismissed out of hand the possibility that senators would eventually stand up to the House of Commons.
“I am very confident that the Senate will accept our verdict,” he said after leaving the Liberal caucus meeting. According to him, the “conversation” with the senators was “good” and “very productive”.
But, as a first step, Mr. Holland expects to see, in the Commons “a broad support of the elected officials”, mentioning that the New Democratic Party and the Bloc Québécois had been vocal in their support of Bill C-11. .
Mr. Rodriguez also mentioned that “it is the bill that has spent the most time in the Senate”.
“It has been studied extensively in the House and in the Senate. Now is the time to move on. The music, television and film industries demand it,” he argued.
According to him, the government gives its approval to “the vast majority of the amendments” of the Senate.
Last month, the Association of Music Publishing Professionals (APEM) invited the House of Commons to reject some Senate amendments, including one about social networks.
According to the organization that represents French-language music publishers in Canada, “the amendment to section 4 was not necessary and is worded in a problematic way”.
“The text creates a loophole that would benefit multinationals when they broadcast music videos. This is highly problematic and would have repercussions for all undertakings in the Canadian broadcasting system. We must return to the text that the House of Commons adopted last June, it had been debated and thought out at length,” said APEM Director General Jérôme Payette in a press release.
However, YouTube, which was pushing for an amendment specifying that content creators are not targeted, sharply criticized Minister Rodriguez’s refusal.
“It is inexplicable and deeply disturbing to tens of thousands of Canadian creators that the Senate’s efforts to add commonsense clarity to the legislation are being defeated,” Jeanette Patell, Canada’s head of government affairs, said on Wednesday. public policies for the dissemination platform.
The bill also caught the attention of the United States. Two U.S. senators have notably called for a trade crackdown on Canada over Bill C-11, saying future regulations flout trade agreements.
Minister Rodriguez has already indicated, on this point, that he has no concerns since he believes that the piece of legislation is “compliant with commercial obligations”.
With Mickey Djuric, The Canadian Press