By: Brad McNeil, PhD Candidate (McMaster University)
Netflix did not log any communications reports through December 2022 or January 2023. However, in February 2023, Netflix picked up where it had left off in November 2022, registering three communications reports on the topic “arts and culture” and “broadcasting.” In Netflix’s November monthly update blog post, it was noted that Netflix’s lobbying activities primarily revolved around Bill C-11. Bill C-11 aims to regulate digital streaming platforms such as Netflix by requiring them to create and promote a certain percentage of Canadian content and make it accessible to Canadian users.
Netflix has long expressed its discontent with Bill C-11. Early in the legislative process Netflix made a submission to the Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage about the Study of Bill C-10, An Act to amend the Broadcasting Act and to make related and consequential amendments to other Acts. Submitted by Stéphane Cardin, Director of Public Policy at Netflix, the submission highlighted Netflix’s investments in Canada. Netflix reminded Canada that in 2020, over 40 original Canadian produced titles were released on the platform. The submission also reminded Canadian Heritage that in 2017, Netflix established Netflix Canada, which was the platforms “first permanent production presence outside of the U.S.,” and committed to Canada under the Investment Canada Act which obligates Netflix to invest “a minimum of $500 million over five years in production activity across the country.”
On October 4, 2022, Cardin appeared before the Standing Committee on Transport and Communications. Again, Cardin spoke to Netflix’s investment in Canada and their active promotion of Canadian content. Cardin raised Netflix’s concerns about Bill C-11 stating, “We believe a new legislative framework should recognize that streaming services provide an unparalleled opportunity to promote Canadian stories to global audiences.” Cardin reminded the committee that Netflix has “invested more than $3.5 billion in Canadian production since 2017.”
Netflix’s reminders of the company’s investment in Canada may be attempts to have the Canadian government reconsider its efforts to indirectly regulate Netflix’s recommender systems for users in Canada. Cardin expressed that although Bill C-11 has a “noble objective”, it threatens to allow the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) to “force Netflix to serve up Canadian films and TV programs people might not want to watch.” Cardin claims Bill C-11 creates “a situation where you will force a certain content option onto a viewer and it is something that they are not interested in: It’s a Canadian horror film and someone is only interested in Canadian romantic comedies. That results in that show being viewed less favourably, and that has an impact.”
Such statements have contributed to a wider concern that Bill C-11 constitutes a censorship Bill. For instance, Senator David Admas Richards an acclaimed novelist and screenwriter, claimed that Bill C-11 was “censorship passing as national inclusion.” Richards concerns is primarily related to the powers that Bill C-11 would give the CRTC to decide what does and doesn’t count as Canadian content. Likewise, Matt Hatfeild Campaigns Director for the internet advocacy group OpenMedia, noted that Bill C-11 is “potentially regulating people’s individual expression” by determining what Canadians can watch.
As noted in an earlier blog post, although Ian Scott stated in a June 2022 Senate meeting that the CRTC might tell platforms to “manipulate it (the algorithm) to produce particular outcomes,” the CRTC is primarily interested in an outcome where Canadian content is being promoted by streaming platforms, regulators are less interested in the specific tools they apply to generate that outcome. Bill C-11 does not seek to control the algorithms of recommendations systems like Netflix; it merely dictates a certain promotion of Candain content to make it more discoverable. Bill C-11 specifically rules against the government tinkering with the algorithms of streaming services. As Marie Woolf points out, “A clause in the bill would prevent the CRTC making an order requiring the “use of a specific computer algorithm or source code.”
Netflix is also worried that the definition of Canadian content is too broad. Cardin added that under the current definition of Canadian content “many productions made in Canada with Canadian actors and crew might not count as Canadian, because Netflix or a company from outside Canada owns the intellectual property rights.” Canadian film industry leaders have also been concerned about the definition of Canadian content because that definition will be re-examined after Bill C-11 passes. Once Bill C-11 had gone through its third reading in the Senate on February 2, 2023, Canadian film industry leaders expressed their concerns that Bill C-11 could be disadvantageous for Canadian filmmakers and TV producers because it would produce a “two tiered system” for Canadian production and foreign players. Essentially, foreign streaming services like Netflix would not be held to the same standard for Canadian content as Canadian production companies. This would give streaming services an edge over Canadian production companies.
The following table presents Netflix’s communication reports from the federal lobbyist registry for the month of February 2023.
| Communication Date | Lobbied | Subject Matters | Responsible Officer |
| 2023-02-03 | Jude Welch, Chief of Staff to the Minister Canadian Heritage (PCH) | Arts and Culture | Reg Thompson |
| 2023-02-03 | Jude Welch, Chief of Staff to the Minister Canadian Heritage (PCH) | Arts and Culture | Reg Thompson |
| 2023-03-24 | Matthew Gray , Policy Advisor Canadian Heritage (PCH) Jude Welch, Chief of Staff to the Minister Canadian Heritage (PCH) Ron Ahluwalia, Director of Policy Canadian Heritage (PCH) | Arts and Culture, Broadcasting | Reg Thompson |