By: Brad McNeil, PhD Candidate (McMaster University)
This monthly lobbying report follows Amazon’s lobbying activities through the month of February 2023. It draws on news articles published during this lobbying period to contextualize Amazon’s lobbying efforts.
The first section traces Amazon Canada Fulfillment Services lobbying activities which were focused on Bill C-11, the Online Streaming Act, and small businesses. Bill C-11 passed in the Senate with amendments on February 2, 2023. Bill C-11 is aimed at streaming services like Amazon Prime which would become subjected to “Canadian content requirements and regulations comparable to traditional broadcasters.” Bill C-11 would require major streaming platforms to spend millions investing in producing and promoting Canadian content.
Amazon Web Services Canada’s lobbying activities appear to remain focussed on government procurement as they continue to seek government contracts for their cloud services.
Neither Amazon Canada Fulfillment Services nor Amazon Web Services registered lobbying communications reports for the month of January 2023.
Amazon Canada Fulfillment Services, ULC: February 2023 Lobbying Summary
Amazon Canada Fulfillment Services did not report any lobbying communications during the months of December 2022 or January 2023. However, in February 2023, the company picked up where it had left off in November 2022, reporting five lobbying communications with various government officials. Three of the five meetings were about “broadcasting”. As noted in a previous monthly update blog post, Amazon Canada Fulfillment Services’ lobbying profile on the Registry of Lobbyist website does not explain specifically what it lobbies about related to broadcasting. However, it is likely that Amazon’s lobbying about broadcasting is related to Bill C-11, the Online Streaming Act, which passed with several amendments in the Senate on February 2, 2023. Bill C-11 updates Canada’s Broadcasting Act to account for online streaming giants like Amazon which hosts its own streaming service Amazon Prime. As of 2021, Amazon Prime Video has a viewership of 12.2 million in Canada. Bill C-11 requires streaming services like Netflix and Amazon to “contribute to Canadian content and make it accessible to users in Canada — or face steep penalties”.
Amazon’s position on Bill C-11 is similar to those of other major streaming services such as Netflix and YouTube. In August 2022, a trade group representing YouTube, Amazon, and Spotify, called the Digital Media Association (DiMA), submitted a letter to the Standing Committee in Transport and Communications on Bill C-11. DiMA called Bill C-11 an “antiquated approach to internet communications” which “attempts to impose a system of regulation that is designed for traditional broadcasters onto streaming services” . DiMA articulated this antiquated approach to broadcasting regulation in the digital era as an impediment for “innovative streaming services in an era of consumer choice, where, otherwise, there are no gatekeepers to content as there are in the broadcasting context.”
Although Canadian Heritage Minister, Pablo Rodriguez notes that there has been “been approximately 218 witnesses, 43 meetings, 119 briefs and 73 proposed amendments” about Bill C-11 between the House of Commons and the Senate, Amazon has not had representatives serve as a witnesses in either the House of Commons or Senate to discuss the Bill. Amazon’s involvement with DiMA suggests that Amazon has elected to work behind the scenes compared to other major streaming platforms who are lobbing more actively and publicly against Bill C-11.
Indeed, it appears as though Amazon is a part of a united front of American corporations who are lobbying against Bill C-11. Deputy United States trade representative Jayme White has expressed Washington’s concern that Bill C-11 unfairly targets American firms. Likewise, US trade representative Katherine Tai expressed the US’s “ongoing concerns with… pending legislation in the Canadian Parliament that could impact digital streaming services and online news sharing and discriminate against U.S businesses”. Canada argues that Bill C-11 does not infringe any of its trade obligations with the US. Michael Geist notes that these discussions between Canadian and U.S. officials suggests that Bill C-11 may be an item for discussion between Biden and Trudeau during Bidens upcoming visit to Canada in March. Canadian Lawyer Lawrence Herman has noted that this type of intervention by American politicians in Canada’s pending legislation reflects “a well-orchestrated lobbying effort by the major digital platforms”.
In February 2023, Amazon Canada Fulfillment Services also lobbied on the topics of “small business” and “economic development”. It is unclear exactly what Amazon lobbies about related to small businesses. However, on its website, Amazon Canada expresses the corporations commitment to small businesses, claiming they are the “backbone of the Canadian economy” because they create jobs and drive innovation. According to a 2022 Amazon Canada Impact Report released in December 2022, Amazon has grown more than 40,000 full and part time employees across Canada. In 2021, more than 41,000 third-party sellers from across Canada sold more than 100 million products on Amazon. Amazon also invests in tools and services to help small businesses reach more customers and protect their brands. For example, in 2021, Amazon “launched the Intellectual Property (IP) Accelerator in Canada, which directly connects Canadian Small Business owners with a curated network of local law firms charging reduced rates on key trademark protection services, giving SMBs access to expert legal and general IP advice that may otherwise be cost-prohibitive or hard to find”.
While Amazon displays a commitment to Canadian Small Businesses, it is important to note that in the past, this type of support has served as a shield from looming antitrust legislation. For example, in March 2022, POLITICO reported that in the United States, lobbyists for Amazon had “mobilized an army of small businesses as well as users who rely on their platforms to discourage Congress from passing bills aimed at curtailing their power”. Further, although Amazon supports small businesses, the Financial Post recently reported that “Amazon is taking half of each sale from its merchants”. Although Amazon provides a platform and resources for small businesses to compete in the global marketplace, Juozas Kaziukenas of the research firm Marketplace Pulse, notes that for small businesses, “it’s getting harder and harder to be profitable because they are spending more and more money on Amazon fees”. The following table presents Amazon Canada Fulfillment Services’ lobbying communications through the month of February 2023. This table was compiled using info from the Registry of Lobbyist website.
| Communication Date | Lobbied | Subject Matters | Responsible Officer |
| 2023-02-02 | Ron Ahluwalia, Director Of Policy Canadian Heritage (PCH) Jude Welch, Chief of Staff Canadian Heritage (PCH) | Broadcasting | Jasmin Begagic |
| 2023-02-08 | James Maloney, Member of Parliament House of Commons | Broadcasting | Jasmin Begagic |
| 2023-02-09 | Husain Aboghodieh, Policy Advisor Global Affairs Canada (GAC) | Small Business | Jasmin Begagic |
| 2023-02-10 | Ron Ahluwalia, Director Of Policy Canadian Heritage (PCH) | Broadcasting | Jasmin Begagic |
| 2023-02-16 | Sébastien Lemire, Member of Parliament House of Commons | Economic Development | Jasmin Begagic |
Amazon Web Services Canada, Inc.: February 2023 Lobbying Summary
Amazon Web Services (AWS) is a subsidiary of Amazon that “provides on-demand cloud computing services for individuals, companies and governments on a metred, pay-as-you-go basis”. As noted in an earlier company profile blog post, “according to the subject matter details provided in the lobbying registrations, nearly all of Amazon’s lobbying is in an effort to pursue Government contracts through their subsidiary Amazon Web Services’ cloud-based solutions software, and to influence policy decisions as they relate to cloud computing.”
Amazon Web Services remains focused on government procurement for their cloud services. Based on Amazon’s lobbying communication reports filed in February, the corporation may currently be seeking government procurement for cloud services for the Department of National Defence (DND). In February 2023, AWS met with two separate DND officials to discuss “government procurement” and “defence”. As noted in a previous company profile blog, in February 2022, Dave Perry of the Canadian Global Affairs Institute noted that it would soon be time for Canada to modernize the military’s systems and processors. It is possible that Amazon is aiming to secure contracts with the Canadian Government to supply these services. In February 2023, Amazon Web Services signed contracts worth $442,653.76 on February 14 with National Film Board for work related to the “Rental of computer equipment related to production and operations (P&O) environment – All servers, storage, printers, etc. (includes all related parts and peripherals)”. The subsidiary of Amazon also signed a contract on February 1 worth $97,406.00 with Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada for work related to “license and Maintenance fees for Client Software”.
| Communication Date | Lobbied | Subject Matters | Responsible Officer |
| 2023-02-03 | Jaxson Khan, Policy Advisor Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada (ISED) | Science and Technology | Eric Gales |
| 2023-02-03 | Elizabeth Anderson, Senior Special Assistant Global Affairs Canada (GAC) | Industry | Gales |
| 2023-02-07 | Rob Jamieson, Senior Policy Advisor Office of the Minister Public Safety, Public Safety Canada (PS) | Industry | Eric Gales |
| 2023-02-16 | Corinne Havard, Policy Advisor National Defence (DND) | Government Procurement | Eric Gales |
| 2023-02-16 | Thomas Gagne, Director, Stakeholder Relations National Defence (DND) | Defence | Eric Gales |