Canadians who post videos to the platforms risk becoming “collateral damage” to the federal online streaming bill, TikTok Canada has warned. The video hosting app’s director of public policy told a Senate committee Wednesday afternoon that Bill C-11 will hurt digital creators by subjecting them to “onerous regulation.” Steve de Eyre, director of public policy and government affairs at TikTok Canada, called on the Senate to “take a sober second look at this bill” and its real impact on digital-first creators. “As written, any video on TikTok that includes music — which is the majority of content posted on our platform — would meet all three criteria to be considered professional,” he said. “The language [in the bill] it doesn’t differentiate between streaming a full-length song versus using a 15- to 30-second clip in the background of a video.” Mr. de Eyre told The Globe and Mail: “To ensure that Canadian creators are not adversely affected by Bill C-11, it is important for the Senate to clarify that using a partial clip of a song in a post or performing a cover song is not the same as streaming a full-length song.” Bill C-11: Streaming bill could mean Justin Bieber’s hits don’t count as ‘Canadian’ on Spotify Disney wants Ottawa to redefine what counts as a Canadian film He said almost all content on TikTok is “user-generated,” although the platform sometimes pays a musician or other professional to post a video. Cultural Heritage Minister Pablo Rodriguez stressed that amateur videos, such as cat videos, would not be covered by the bill. The C-11 bill will only cover business content. This includes professionally produced songs, the minister said. The legislation is designed to update Canada’s broadcasting laws to cover platforms such as YouTube, TikTok, Spotify, Disney+ and Netflix. It will force them to promote and financially support Canadian content. Like traditional broadcasters, the platforms will be regulated by the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission, the broadcasting regulator. The streaming bill has passed the Commons and is now being considered by the Senate Transportation and Communications Committee. Senators have the power to propose changes to the text of the bill before it becomes law. TikTok’s concerns were echoed by YouTube and Music Canada, the trade association that represents Canada’s biggest music companies, including Sony Music Entertainment Canada and Warner Music Canada. Patrick Rogers, CEO of Music Canada, told senators on the committee that the bill’s current text leaves “room for interpretation.” He said the bill needed minor changes to the text “to ensure that its effects match what was intended”. But Laura Scaffidi, a spokeswoman for the Heritage Minister, said the government had been “clear from the start” about the scope of the bill. “Platforms are in, users are out. User-generated content uploaded to YouTube will not be captured by this account. Only platforms that broadcast commercial content are in scope,” he said. “In other words, if a platform broadcasts commercial music, it will have an obligation to contribute to our culture. Whether you hear a song on the radio or a song on YouTube, that song should be treated similarly and fairly. Today, streaming platforms benefit from our market but have no responsibility to Canadian artists and creators.” The Association of Professional Music Publishers, which represents French-language music publishers in Canada, said C-11 should be approved as soon as possible. The group’s general manager, Jérôme Payette, told senators that the lack of platform regulation has had a significant impact on Canadian music, particularly French-language music. He said TV and radio revenues are declining and Canadian music is not getting a significant share of revenue from growing online businesses. “Unfortunately, the more platforms become important, the poorer Canadian music becomes and struggles to reach its audience,” he said. The Heritage department said the bill would not give powers to change the platforms’ algorithms, which can influence the choices people are presented with from Spotify or YouTube, often based on their previous choices. Music Canada’s Mr. Rogers called on the Minister of Cultural Heritage to send a policy directive to the CRTC saying the regulator should not interfere with platforms’ algorithms. and that the bill would only cover commercial content and not videos posted by members of the public. Jeanette Patell, YouTube Canada’s head of government relations, said the current text of C-11 would give the CRTC “authority over what content is prioritized and how and where that content is presented to Canadians.” He warned that the bill, as currently drafted, would give the CRTC the power to regulate anyone who directly or indirectly earns revenue from their posts, which are “essentially everything on YouTube.” Ms. Patell called on senators to make “surgical changes that create more precision in the legal text” so that the bill’s powers align with Mr. Rodriguez’s stated goals. Andrew Cash, President of the Canadian Independent Music Association, voiced his support for the bill, which he said will lead to more investment in music in Canada.
