(Ottawa) YouTube says Canadian creators of digital content, including influencers, could lose revenue overseas if Ottawa forces online platforms to promote Canadian content.
Posted at 2:23 p.m.
The online streaming giant says a bill that would force platforms to promote Canadian content would risk hurting that content’s popularity overseas — and robbing many Canadian YouTubers of revenue they rely on.
YouTube is concerned that the Liberals’ proposed online streaming law could skew the algorithm the platform uses to match content delivery to user preferences.
Michael Geist, a digital law expert at the University of Ottawa, says the bill would encourage platforms like YouTube to focus on Canadian content that users wouldn’t necessarily have tended to choose.
If they don’t choose the content offered to them, or if they don’t like it, YouTube’s algorithm, which works across borders, could interpret this content as unpopular, which could so that the work of Canadian creators is less promoted around the world – and less paid.
Laura Scaffidi, spokeswoman for Canadian Heritage Minister Pablo Rodriguez, says the bill would not affect user-generated content. She also argues that the law would give online streaming platforms flexibility in how they make it easier to find Canadian commercial content.