The Liberal Canadian government is resurrecting its online censorship bill that many were pleased died last year.
The new Bill – now called Bill C-11 – is aimed at regulating online platforms.
The purpose of Bill C-11 is to update the Broadcasting Act which was passed in 1991 before the internet was mainstream.
We obtained a copy of the bill for you here.
If the bill passes, platforms that host content such as Netflix and Spotify, will be required to follow the content rules that traditional broadcasters follow as well as be forced to show a specified amount of local content and contributing cultural funds.
The Liberals claim that Bill C-11 addresses the free speech concerns that were raised about Bill C-10. In the new bill, user-generated content will be exempted from regulation by the Canadian Radio-Television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC).
Professor Michael Geist, from the University of Ottawa has disputed that the new proposals protect free speech.
“Indeed, for all the talk that user generated content is out, the truth is that everything from podcasts to TikTok videos fit neatly into the new exception that gives the CRTC the power to regulate such content as a ‘program,’” Geist wrote in a blog post.
Basically, the bill means the Canadian Radio and television and Telecommunications Commission will be granted permission to regulate a lot of social media content created by Canadians.
Hellbound and Down 