Time for Netflix to pay for CanCon: CRTC

OTTAWA The broadcast regulator is adding its voice to the domestic chorus calling on the federal government to pry more commitments — monetary or otherwise — from online streaming giants like Netflix and Spotify and consider new internet levies to fund Canadian content.

In a report released Thursday, the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission recommended the Trudeau Liberals consider regulating any online video or music service, no matter where they are located, and have them pay for the creation of, or better promote domestic content.

The financial burden for creating new content would be spread beyond traditional domestic companies to avoid losses of jobs, services and content, as well as save things like local news and reduce the pressures on federal coffers to fund production.

Internet service providers might find themselves facing a new levy if the government adopted all the recommendations in the report, while traditional companies would see reductions in their mandatory contributions.

University of Ottawa professor Michael Geist said on Twitter that the CRTC was effectively calling for a “regulate everything model” that included “ISP and Netflix taxes.” Advocacy group OpenMedia said the Liberals couldn’t take the report seriously when it was clear that “internet affordability is the top concern for Canadians.”

Consumers are not expected to see any overall change in how much they pay, said CRTC chairman Ian Scott, who added that the recommendation doesn’t amount to an internet tax.

The Liberals have been loath to introduce anything that could be styled as a Netflix tax or an internet tax, having repeatedly said it is not in their plans.

But the CRTC report, which the Liberals requested, is likely to play a role in a planned review of the federal laws overseeing television, radio and telecommunications services.