Weekly News (April 12, 2022)

Compiled by Kyle Wyndham-West, Bradley McNeil, Fizza Kulvi, Meaghan Wester, and Nick Gertler with Sara Bannerman, Fenwick McKelvey, Guillaume Dandurand, Marek Blottière, and Kevin Morin
McMaster University, Communications Governance Observatory

The Communications Governance Discussion Group meets every few weeks by Zoom.  Email organizer Derek Hrynyshyn <derekh@yorku.ca> for details.

(April 5- April 12, 2022)

Canadian News 

• [PLATFORM REGULATION/NEWS FUNDING] New bill will force tech giants to negotiate deals to pay media to use their content (The Toronto Star)
• [PLATFORM REGULATION/NEWS FUNDING] Ottawa forcera le financement des médias par Facebook et Google (Le Devoir)
• [PLATFORM REGULATION/NEWS FUNDING] Key questions answered about new bill forcing tech giants to pay media for content (The Toronto Star)
• [PLATFORM REGULATION/NEWS FUNDING] Politics Briefing: Liberals’ Bill C-18 would compel tech giants to compensate Canadian news industry (The Globe and Mail)
• [PLATFORM REGULATION/NEWS FUNDING] Liberal bill requires digital giants to negotiate fair rate with Canadian news publishers (The National Post)
• [PLATFORM REGULATION] Former CRTC leaders say regulator is not equipped to oversee the Online News Act (The Globe and Mail)
• [BROADCAST POLICY] Réglementation des plateformes numériques: Le CRTC devra définir ce qui est une série ou un film canadien (La Presse)
• [ACADEMIC FREEDOM] Quebec bill on academic freedom says no words are off-limits in classrooms (The Globe and Mail)
• [FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION] Québec propose une loi pour libérer la parole sur les campus (Le Devoir)
• [FREEDOM OF INFORMATION] Procès secret Un front commun de médias engage des procédures judiciaires (La Presse)
• [COPYRIGHT LAW] OPINION: Colby Cosh Liberals slip potentially odious copyright extension into back of budget (The National Post)
• [TELECOMMUNICATIONS] Globalive Capital ramping up efforts to buy Shaw Communications’ Freedom Mobile (The Globe and Mail)
• [BROADCASTING POLICY] OPINION: ALEX LEVINE The telling of Canadian stories is at risk (The Toronto Star)
• [PLATFORM REGULATION/CULTURAL FUNDING] Opinion: Saulnier: Géants numériques et médias canadiens: Google et Facebook enfin mis au pas ? (La Presse)
• [PLATFORM REGULATION/CULTURAL FUNDING] OPINION: IRVING, DEEGAN SARS-VOUSTSINAS Liberal plan to compel Big Tech to share revenues a lifeline for news publishers (The National Post) / Opinion: Irving, Deegan, & Saras-Voutsinas: Les médias ont besoin d’une adoption du projet de loi d’ici juin (La Presse)
• [PRIVACY] OPINION: CONRAD BLACK Government has no business in the bank accounts of the nation (The National Post)

International News

• [PRIVACY] FTC Chair Lina Khan calls for a paradigm shift on data privacy (The Washington Post)
• [FREEDOM OF SPEECH] As Russian accounts spread war disinformation, expert says Twitter crackdown isn’t enough (The Toronto Star)
• [PLATFORM GOVERNANCE] Meta briefly blocks hashtags tied to bucha killings (The Ottawa Citizen)
• [PLATFORM GOVERNANCE] Twitter’s ‘safety mode’ could shield politicians from harassment. It could also silence critics. (The Washington Post)
• [ACCESS TO INTERNET] U.S. quietly paying millions to send Starlink terminals to Ukraine, contrary to SpaceX claims (The Washington Post)
• [CYBER SECURITY] Leading security companies Mandiant and CrowdStrike vow to collaborate (The Washington Post)
• [PRIVACY] Record fine for Dutch tax office over personal data list (City News)
• [SECURITY/AI/TELECOMMS] VSBLTY AI Logic to be Installed in 20,000 Cameras Over Four-Year Period (The Financial Post

(April 5- April 12, 2022)

    Supreme Court of Canada

• [PATENT LAW] Eugene Seymour v. Her Majesty the Queen in Right of Canada (Canadian Intellectual Property-Rights Office) (F.C.) (Civil) (By Leave) (39937)
  • The miscellaneous motions are dismissed. The application for leave to appeal from the judgment of the Federal Court of Appeal, Number A-398-19, 2021 FCA 180, dated September 14, 2021, is dismissed with costs.

• OTTAWA, April 12, 2022 — The Supreme Court of Canada has released its 2021 Year in Review which shares information and stories about the work of the Court and the employees. Throughout the second year of pandemic, the Court continued to modernize operations and found new ways to be accessible to Canadians

    Microsoft Blog

• Disrupting cyberattacks targeting Ukraine

    Apple Blog

• Report finds third-party apps see global success on the App Store

    Amazon Blog

• Black Founders Build with Alexa

CRTC

News Release and Speeches

• CRTC Broadband Fund to introduce or improve Internet access services for 10 communities in British Columbia and Alberta 
• CRTC Broadband Fund second call: projects selected in March 2022 (Backgrounder)

Decisions

• 2022-101 – Canadian Broadcasting Corporation – Prince Rupert and Kitimat, British Columbia – Applications to change the authorized contours of CBUK-FM Kitimat
• 2022-99 – KCVI Educational Radio Station Incorporated – Kingston, Ontario – Application to change the authorized contours of the low-power English-language community radio station CKVI-FM
• 2022-102 – Updates to national wireless carriers’ GSM-based wholesale mobile wireless roaming tariffs to incorporate seamless hand-off and 5G roaming – Public records: 8740-B38-202104628, 8740-R28-202104636, and 8740-T66-202104884

Senate of Canada

• Planned & Possible sitting days this week: The Senate will not sit this week.

Canadian House of Commons

• Planned & Possible sitting days this week: The House meets all week.

CRTC

Anticipated releases for the week of 11 to 15 April 2022 The CRTC is not planning on issuing any decisions, regulatory policies and reports in the week of 11 to 15 April 2022. This is subject to change without notice.

Public Hearing

• May 12, 2022 – Gatineau, Quebec – To consider the broadcasting applications listed in Broadcasting Notice of Consultation CRTC 2022-62, 2022-62-1 View hearing documents (2022-62)

Open Proceedings

• CRTC Open Broadcasting Proceedings 
• CRTC Open Telecom Proceedings

Public consultations

• Stakeholder engagement on fair revenue sharing between digital platforms and news media: Closed Consultation 
• Canadian Intellectual Property Office fee adjustment (Open – Accepting Input)
• Proposed requirements respecting police record checks for individuals involved in the provision of services governed by the Child, Youth and Family Services Act, 2017 and the Intercountry Adoption Act, 1998.

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