Fix Bill C-11 – Digital First Canada

#FixC11

On Thursday April th, Bill C-11 passed through the Senate and received Royal Assent. This means the bill will become law. A Senate amendment to protect user generated content was rejected by the House Of Commons and ultimately passed by the Senate without it.

BILL C11 UPDATE?

We are disappointed that the Government refused to protect the content we post and see online and protect the businesses of Digital First Creators in Canada.

After years of explaining the possible impacts of the bill on the internet, Digital Creators were ultimately dismissed in favour of legacy media lobby groups.

You will find a summary from Michael Geist on what happened here.

What does this mean?

The CRTC (a government regulator) has the ability to direct platforms to change how they surface and promote content
User Generated Content is within the scope of the new law

What happens next?

The Government will issue a policy directive to instruct the CRTC on how to regulate the new powers in Bill-C11
There will then be CRTC public hearings, and this will be a key opportunity to have your voice heard
The CRTC will then make regulations

What does this mean for Digital Creators today?

In the short term, not much, the CRTC process will take some time
We will have to wait to see the policy directive and what the CRTC decide to do
It does mean that today the Government has failed to recognize Digital Creators as a vibrant part of Canadian Culture worthy of protection

What Can You Do?

Do not stop expressing your disappointment. The Government still needs to hear from us
Stay informed. Follow DFC on twitter for information on CRTC consultations https://twitter.com/DigitalFirstCan
Get involved. Email info@digitalfirstcanada.ca if you are a Creator that would like to be more active in the important upcoming activities

We are extremely grateful for all the support, emails and phone calls made by Digital Creators and their fans, and we will not stop fighting.

KNOW THE FACTS

In its current form, Bill C-11 gives the CRTC authority to:

Dictate how and where your content appears on digital platforms.

Affect your discoverability by artificially promoting some creators over others. Viewers may be pushed to watch content they aren't interested in, resulting in more skips and thumbs down, which would impact how your content is exported to global audiences, lowering viewership and revenue.

Apply complex “CanCon” rules that require you to prove your content is “Canadian” enough. This is easy for large Canadian media companies with teams who have been following these rules for decades, and makes it harder for smaller creators to benefit from any financial or promotional gain.

Push your content down in feeds if it doesn’t meet CanCon requirements.

Regulate the length and type of advertising on your channel, which could mean less money in your pocket.

1:1 FOR INSTA