(Ottawa) Is the distribution of weeklies a business opportunity for Canada Post or would it rather increase its deficit? This is the question that Minister Jean-Yves Duclos recently asked the state company in the context of the end of Publisac. The mayor of Longueuil, Catherine Fournier, demanded last week that local newspapers be distributed free by mail.
“I have asked Canada Post to take stock of both the current situation and future prospects for supporting other things that Canada Post does less now, i.e., for example, support for community media,” responded the Minister of Public Services and Procurement to The Press Wednesday.
His office indicated last week that Minister Duclos was in discussions with the state-owned company to find solutions to the distribution of local newspapers without specifying whether he had requested a cost analysis.
“I asked them to take stock of what they are already doing,” explained the minister. What I’m hearing is that they already have existing programs that come in at lower costs than other distribution methods, but higher costs compared to methods that have already been used including by Publisac . »
“I asked them to take stock of this and offer us options for the future,” he said.
With the end of Publisac which will run from February to May throughout Quebec, many weeklies are losing an economical distribution method. The rate offered by Transcontinental was three to four times lower than that of Canada Post, which is $140 per 1,000 copies for high circulation newspapers. This can add up to hundreds of thousands of dollars annually.
The president of Hebdos Québec, Benoit Chartier, asked the Minister of Canadian Heritage, Pascale St-Onge, for annual aid of 10 million to absorb this additional cost for the 120 newspapers he represents.
Mme St-Onge did not stop to answer questions from The Press before the weekly meeting of the Liberal caucus on Wednesday, preferring to let Minister Duclos answer questions.
If Mayor Fournier asks for free distribution, the National Assembly and the Bloc Québécois are instead demanding a preferential rate similar to that offered by Transcontinental to include weeklies in Publisac.
However, Canada Post is also in the red. Its latest annual report shows a loss in revenue of $548 million before taxes.
“Canada Post is a Crown corporation whose activities are financed by the revenue it generates by selling its products and services, and not by taxpayers’ money,” recalled its spokesperson Janick Cormier. Our mandate is to offer the population high-quality postal services at a reasonable price, while remaining financially independent. »
The state corporation nevertheless said it was sensitive to the situation of the weeklies and their “important role in disseminating news to the Canadian population and communities.”
“We work hard to ensure our prices are competitive and regularly review our approach in order to make improvements where possible,” added its spokesperson. Our sales and business services teams will work with local newspapers on a case-by-case basis to discuss the products and solutions available to them. »
There is also a format issue for weeklies since Canada Post imposes certain length restrictions to obtain a reasonable rate.
“If they were able to lighten the rules a little on format and weight, and then have a reasonable price, they will save information in Quebec,” says the president of Éditions nordiques, Simon Brisson. He owns four weeklies in the Charlevoix and Côte-Nord regions.
The company, which already has its own peddlers, will lose 1 million in income from 1er May because it will no longer ensure the distribution of Publisac with that of its newspapers.
Weekly newspapers, like all media, are suffering from the loss of advertising revenue monopolized by digital giants like Meta and Google. With the adoption of the Online News ActGoogle will pay $100 million annually to newsrooms, nearly two-thirds of which will go to the written press.
The federal government also offers other programs to help the media such as a journalism labor tax credit, the Canada Periodical Fund and the Local Journalism Initiative.