Asked to pay for news use, Meta may stop providing news for Canadian users.

Meta said that if Canada’s proposed online news bill passes in its current form, Canadians will no longer be able to access news on Facebook and Instagram. The online news bill, also known as “House Bill C-18”, was introduced last April. It requires platform companies such as Meta and Google to negotiate commercial deals and compensate news publishers for their content. The bill has the support of Canadian media and the federal Liberal government.

Meta spokesperson Lisa Laventure complained that a legislative framework that forces Meta to pay for links or content it does not publish is neither sustainable nor feasible. Canadian Heritage Minister Pablo Rodriguez responded by saying that Facebook resorted to threats instead of working sincerely with the Canadian government, which was disappointing.