October 2023 Update: Google
By: Kyle Wyndham-West, PhD Student (McMaster University)
In the month of October Google registered 12 communications reports on varying subject matters such as science and technology, economic development, broadcasting, media, economic development, and privacy and access to information.
During this time, Google made headlines responding to regulators surrounding the Online News Act. There were many notes in the press of these back and forths as well as additional remarks about layoffs in news divisions.
| Date | Lobbied | Subject Matters | Responsible Office |
| 2023-10-11 | Bram Abramson, Commissioner, Ontario RegionCanadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) | Science and Technology, Economic Development | Sabrina Geremia |
| 2023-10-13 | Owen Ripley, Associate Assistant Deputy Minister, Cultural AffairsCanadian Heritage (PCH) Brian MacKay, Director of Policy & Stakeholder EngagementOffice of the Minister, Canadian Heritage (PCH) | Broadcasting, Media | Sabrina Geremia |
| 2023-10-17 | Pascale St-Onge, Minister of Canadian HeritageHouse of Commons Jude Welch, Chief of StaffOffice of the Minister, Canadian Heritage (PCH) Brian MacKay, Director of Policy & Stakeholder EngagementOffice of the Minister, Canadian Heritage (PCH) Owen Ripley, Associate Assistant Deputy Minister, Cultural AffairsCanadian Heritage (PCH) | Media, Broadcasting | Sabrina Geremia |
| 2023-10-17 | Jude Welch, Chief of StaffOffice of the Minister, Canadian Heritage (PCH) Brian MacKay, Director of Policy & Stakeholder EngagementOffice of the Minister, Canadian Heritage (PCH) Pascale St-Onge, Minister of Canadian HeritageHouse of Commons Owen Ripley, Associate Assistant Deputy Minister, Cultural AffairsCanadian Heritage (PCH) | Broadcasting, Media | Sabrina Geremia |
| 2023-10-18 | Brian MacKay, Director of Policy & Stakeholder EngagementOffice of the Minister, Canadian Heritage (PCH) Jude Welch, Chief of StaffOffice of the Minister, Canadian Heritage (PCH) | Broadcasting, Media | Sabrina Geremia |
| 2023-10-19 | Mark Schaan, Senior Assistant Deputy MinisterInnovation, Science and Economic Development Canada (ISED) | Science and Technology | Sabrina Geremia |
| 2023-10-23 | Colin Deacon, Senator for Nova ScotiaSenate of Canada Flordeliz (Gigi) Osler , Senator for ManitobaSenate of Canada | Science and Technology | Sabrina Geremia |
| 2023-10-24 | Randy Hoback, Member of Parliament for Prince AlbertHouse of Commons | Economic Development | Sabrina Geremia |
| 2023-10-25 | Kyle Seeback, Member of Parliament for Dufferin—CaledonHouse of Commons | Economic Development | Sabrina Geremia |
| 2023-10-26 | Jaxson Khan, Policy AdvisorOffice of the Minister, Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada (ISED) | Privacy and Access to Information | Sabrina Geremia |
| 2023-10-27 | Brian MacKay, Director of Policy & Stakeholder EngagementOffice of the Minister, Canadian Heritage (PCH) | Media, Broadcasting | Sabrina Geremia |
| 2023-10-27 | Owen Ripley, Associate Assistant Deputy Minister, Cultural AffairsCanadian Heritage (PCH) | Broadcasting, Media | Sabrina Geremia |
September 2023 Update: Google
By: Kyle Wyndham-West, PhD Student (McMaster University)
In the month of September Google recorded 4 communications reports with Science and Technology, Media and Broadcasting.
It is important mention that Google is still entralled in an antitrust lawsuit in the U.S., much like Amazon and Meta also receiving similar heat globally. It is now being reported by Canadian pundits that our officials should also be made aware of the scrutiny that Alphabet is going through. Google has also reached a tentative agreement with all U.S. states over alleged app store monopoly, as this is a tentative agreement the specifics have not been released.
The search engine giant has also announced a program where they will be indicating what content is sourced from generative AI within their services in regards to elections material. In conversation with AI, Google’s chatbot Bard is now no longer restricted to pulling information from the searh engine but can now inform answers through material in your Gmail inbox and drive storage.
| Date | Lobbied | Subject Matters | Responsible Officer |
| 2023-09-13 | Mark Schaan , Senior Assistant Deputy Minister, Strategy and Innovation Policy Sector | Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada (ISED) | Science and Technology | Sabrina Geremia |
| 2023-09-22 | Jaxson Khan, Policy Advisor, Office of the Minister | Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada (ISED) | Science and Technology | Sabrina Geremia |
| 2023-09-27 | Owen Ripley, Associate Assistant Deputy Minister, Cultural Affairs | Canadian Heritage (PCH)Brian MacKay, Director of Policy & Stakeholder Engagement, Office of the Minister | Canadian Heritage (PCH) | BroadcastingMedia | Sabrina Geremia |
| 2023-09-28 | Brian Mackay, Director of Policy & Stakeholder Engagement, Office of the Minister | Canadian Heritage (PCH)Owen Ripley, Associate Assistant Deputy Minister, Cultural Affairs | Canadian Heritage (PCH)Pascale St-Onge, Minister of Canadian Heritage | House of CommonsJude Welch, Chief of Staff, Office of the Minister | Canadian Heritage (PCH)Isabelle Mondou, Deputy Minister | Canadian Heritage (PCH) | BroadcastingMedia | Sabrina Geremia |
August 2023 Update: Google
By: Kyle Wyndham-West, PhD Student (McMaster University)
In August Google engaged in four communications with the Registry of Lobbyists on the topics of “media”. It is possible that the communications were surrounding the ongoing debates of formerly Bill C-18, and now The Online News Act, as there were several reports on the matter, specifically considering potential payments the companies would be required to pay under the act. It is reported that Google may need to pay Canadian News Outlets up to $172 million in annual payments. It has been decided that if these deals are not organized voluntarily that there will be mandatory bargaining overseen by the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC).
| Date | Lobbied | Subject Matters | Responsible Officer |
| 2023-08-16 | Ron Ahluwalia, Director of PolicyOffice of the Minister, Canadian Heritage (PCH) | Media | Sabrina Geremia |
| 2023-08-14 | Jude Welch, Chief of Staff, Office of the Minister | Canadian Heritage (PCH) Pascale St-Onge, Minister of Canadian Heritage | House of Commons Owen Ripley, Associate Assistant Deputy Minister, Cultural Affairs | Canadian Heritage (PCH) Ron Ahluwalia, Director of Policy, Office of the Minister | Canadian Heritage (PCH) Brian MacKay, Deputy Director of Policy, Office of the Minister | Canadian Heritage (PCH) | Media | Sabrina Geremia |
| 2023-08-08 | Brian MacKay, Deputy Director of Policy, Office of the Minister | Canadian Heritage (PCH) | Media | Sabrina Geremia |
| 2023-08-02 | Sarah Hussaini, Director of Policy | Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) | Media | Sabrina Geremia |
July 2023 Update: Google
By: Brad McNeil, PhD Candidate (McMaster University)
In July 2023, Google logged only one communication report with the Registry of Lobbyists on the topics of “science and technology”, “broadcasting”, and “media.” It is likely that some of Google’s lobbying this month is related to Bill C-18, the Online News Act. As stated in early blog post, since Bill C-18 received royal assent on June 22, 2023, Google has retaliated by vowing to remove its news links on its services which include Google News, Search, and Discover as well as Google News Showcase, Additionally, Google chose not to include Canada in the expansion of its AI chatbot, Bard. The chat bot is available in “40 languages across 230 countries”, but Canada is not included in this long list. As noted by Nida Zafar, Googles decision not to withhold Bard from Canadian consumers may related to the Bill C-18 drama. However, it may also be related to Bill C-27, the Digital Charter Implementation Act which is concerned with AI and updated privacy regulation. Apart from Canada, the only other countries that Bard is not available in are Russia, China, North Korea, and Afghanistan.
Google’s July Communication Reports
| Date | Lobbied | Subject Matters | Responsible Officer |
| 2023-07-18 | Ron Ahluwalia, Director of Policy | Office of the Minister, Canadian Heritage (PCH) Brian MacKay, Deputy Director of Policy | Office of the Minister, Canadian Heritage (PCH) Jude Welch, Chief of Staff | Office of the Minister, Canadian Heritage (PCH) | Science and Technology, Broadcasting, Media | Sabrina Geremia |
June 2023 Update: Google
By: Brad McNeil, PhD Candidate (McMaster University)
In June 2023, Google registered seven lobbying communications reports. All of Google’s seven lobbying meetings in June were about “Science and Technology”, “Broadcasting,” and “Media”. It is possible that Google’s lobbying efforts this month were related to Bill C-18 the Online News Act and Bill C-11the Online Streaming Act. In the March and April 2023 monthly update for Google, it was noted that the Google was running a news blocking experiment as a response to Bill C-18 which, if passed, would force platforms like Google and Facebook to compensate Canadian media outlets for linking articles shared on their platforms. On Wednesday June 7, Prime Minister Trudeau described Google’s threats to withdraw its news services from its platforms as a bullying tactic which would not work in Canada. Trudeau noted “We will continue to make sure that these incredibly profitable corporations contribute to strengthening our democracy, not weakening it.”
When Bill C-18 passed, Google confirmed that it would remove news links on its services which include Google News, Search, and Discover as well as Google News Showcase, a product it uses “to license news from over 150 local publishers.” When Bill C-18 received royal assent on June 22, Kent Walker, president of global affairs at Google and Alphabet noted “The unprecedented decision to put a price on links (a so-called ‘link tax’) creates uncertainty for our products and exposes us to uncapped financial liability simply for facilitating Canadians’ access to news from Canadian publishers.” Heritage Minister Pablo Rodriguez stated his disappointment that Google would rather spend money to change their platform so that news may be blocked from Canadians rather than paying their fair share to news organizations. On June 29, Google released a blog post, the post pointed that Bill C-18 would unfairly force Google and Facebook to “to pay for simply showing links to news, something that everyone else does for free.” The blog post highlights the ways which Google claims to have tried to improve Bill C-18. The blog post details that meetings with the Canadian government have not rendered workable results, but they hope that the Government will be able to outline a path forward.
| Date | Lobbied | Subject Matters | Responsible Officer |
| 2023-06-23 | Brian MacKay, Deputy Director of Policy | Office of the Minister, Canadian Heritage (PCH) | Science and Technology, Broadcasting, Media | Sabrina Geremia |
| 2023-06-22 | Brian MacKay, Deputy Director of Policy | Office of the Minister, Canadian Heritage (PCH) Owen Ripley, Associate Assistant Deputy Minister, Cultural Affairs Canadian Heritage (PCH) Pablo Rodriguez, Minister of Canadian Heritage House of Commons | Science and Technology, Broadcasting, Media | Sabrina Geremia |
| 2023-06-21 | Ron Ahluwalia, Director of Policy | Office of the Minister, Canadian Heritage (PCH) Brian MacKay, Deputy Director of Policy | Office of the Minister, Canadian Heritage (PCH) | Science and Technology, Broadcasting, Media | Sabrina Geremia |
| 2023-06-14 | Lionel Fritz Adimi, Policy Advisor Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) Sarah Hussaini, Director of Policy Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) Brian MacKay, Deputy Director of Policy | Office of the Minister, Canadian Heritage (PCH) Sean Mullin , Special Advisor, Economic Affairs Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) | Science and Technology, Broadcasting, Media | Sabrina Geremia |
| 2023-06-13 | Alicia Barin, Vice-Chairperson, Broadcasting Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) | Science and Technology | Sabrina Geremia |
| 2023-06-12 | Brian Clow, Deputy Chief of Staff Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) Lionel Fritz Adimi, Policy Advisor Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) Sarah Hussaini, Director of Policy Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) Brian MacKay, Deputy Director of Policy | Office of the Minister of Canadian Heritage, Canadian Heritage (PCH) | Science and Technology, Broadcasting, Media | Sabrina Geremia |
| 2023-06-11 | Ashley Michnowski, Director of Communications | Office of the Minister , Canadian Heritage (PCH) | Science and Technology, Broadcasting, Media | Sabrina Geremia |
| 2023-06-07 | Ron Ahluwalia, Director of Policy | Office of the Minister, Canadian Heritage (PCH) Brian MacKay, Deputy Director of Policy | Office of the Minister, Canadian Heritage (PCH) | Science and Technology, Broadcasting, Media | Sabrina Geremia |
May 2023 Update: Google
By: Brad McNeil, PhD Candidate (McMaster University)
In March 2023, Google registered only one lobbying communication report on the topic of “science and technology”. It is not entirely clear what Google may have discussed with Nova Scotia Senator Colin Deacon on May 3rd. Related to matters concerning “science and technology”, Google’s Registry of Lobbyist profile notes that they lobby about “innovation policy, specifically policies or programs related to the adoption of technology by small and medium-sized enterprises” and also technological developments related to artificial intelligence and technology policy, “specifically promoting the development of technological infrastructure through the Smart Cities Challenge.” It may be noted, that although this meeting was labelled as a discussion about science and technology, Senator Deacon has been highly critical of Google’s news blocking experiment that it conducted on 4% of Canadian Google users in February. Although it cannot be said with certainty what this meeting was about, it may be possible that Google sought to address Deacon’s concerns related to Google’s position and reactions to Bill C-18, the Online News Bill which would force platforms operating in Canada to “Google and Meta compensate news organizations for posting or linking to their work.”
| Date | Lobbied | Subject Matters | Responsible Officer |
| 2023-05-03 | Colin Deacon, Senator for Nova Scotia Senate of Canada | Science and Technology | Sabrina Geremia |
Google Canada Corporation: April 2023 Lobbying Summary
By: Brad McNeil, PhD Candidate (McMaster University)
In April 2023, Google continued to lobby about broadcasting and media, logging three communication reports on the topic with various government departments. On April 18, 2023, Senators decided to accept Bill C-11 “without insisting on further changes”, despite platforms’ insistence that the Bill would backfire on Canadian content creators. Despite Google’s efforts to frame Bill C-11 as a step backwards for Canadian content creators, Canadian Heritage Minister Pablo Rodriguez noted that Bill C-11 would not “change anything for individual users posting online, just the platforms” . Bill C-11 has “spent the most time in Senate in the history of Canada”.
In regards to Bill C-18, Kent Walker, Googles President of Global Affairs, noted on April 20, 2023 that, although Google was no longer running it’s news blocking experiment, the decision to block news for Canadian Google users in Canada is not off the table should Bill C-18 pass. Walker noted, “we have not reached a final decision as to what business actions we might have to take”, in regards to the potential passing of Bill-18. Although Google has often attempted to frame Bill C-18 as faulty for creating a problematic news environment which boosts misinformation, Google has also described Bill C-18 as an obstacle to their business model. As Google’s Vice President of News, Richard Gingras explains “if we must pay publishers simply for linking to their sites… it would be reasonable for us, or any business, to reconsider why we would continue to do so.” Google maintains that the link tax associated with Bill C-18 would create an online news environment that incentivizes “clickbait content over high-quality local journalism”.
The following chart offers a look at the issues that Google lobbied about in April 2023.
| Communication Date | Lobbied | Subject Matters | Responsible Officer |
| 2023-04-04 | Jean-Denis Garon, Member of Parliament for Mirabel House of Commons | Science and Technology | Sabrina Geremia |
| 2023-04-17 | Jaxson Khan, Policy Advisor | Office of the Minister, Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada (ISED) | Science and Technology | Sabrina Geremia |
| 2023-04-18 | Owen Ripley, Associate Assistant Deputy Minister, Cultural Affairs Canadian Heritage (PCH) | Media | Sabrina Geremia |
| 2023-04-19 | Jim Quinn, Senator for New Brunswick Senate of Canada | Broadcasting, Media | Sabrina Geremia |
| 2023-04-24 | René Cormier, Senator for New Brunswick Senate of Canada | Broadcasting, Media | Sabrina Geremia |
| 2023-04-25 | Ron Ahluwalia, Director of Policy | Office of the Minister, Canadian Heritage (PCH) | Broadcasting, Media | Sabrina Geremia |
Google Canada Corporation: March 2023 Lobbying Summary
By: Brad McNeil, PhD Candidate (McMaster University)
The Tech Lobby’s previous monthly update on Google’s January and February 2023 lobbying activities stated that Google was interested in influencing the direction of Bill C-18, the Online News Bill. In March 2023, Google continued to lobby about “broadcasting and media”, submitting nine communications reports on the topic with the registry of lobbyist website. As previously noted, Google’s decision to remove its news function from Canada as a response to the Bill C-18 news link tax prompted parliament to question top Google executives.
In March, it was revealed that Google was conducting an experiment, temporarily removing news from its services in Canada for some Canadian users. On March 10, 2023, Google released a blog post on public policy titled “An open letter to Canadians”. The post noted that Google wanted Canadians to “understand what we’re doing and why, and to know that we remain committed to working with the government on reasonable and balanced solutions to fix Bill C-18”. Framing Bill C-18 as unworkable legislation, Google’s letter served to reassure Canadians that the news blocking experiment would affect less than 4% of Canadian users and was a “responsible” experiment. The blog post points to the ways Google supports Canadian journalism through initiatives like Google News Showcase which involves agreements that “support 150+ Canadian publications, paying them for curated content and to share articles that would otherwise be behind publisher paywalls”, and Google News Initiative which “provides tools, training, and funding to help support Canadian news organizations, independent journalists and students to innovate and adapt”. Ultimately, the blog post claims that “Bill C-18 puts a price on free links”, in this regard, Google frames Bill C-18, which aims to boost Canadian journalism, as a Bill that will have an adverse effect on Google users who rely on the system for consuming news.
In March, in response to Google’s experiment, the Heritage Committee called Google executives to a commons committee meeting. The committee called on Chief Executive Officer Sundar Pichai, Kent Walker, Google’s President of Legal Affairs, and Richard Gingras, Vice-President of News. However, Google sent only Sabrina Geremia, Canada’s Public Policy Manager, to answer to the committee members questions. The Committee also asked for internal communications related to Google’s decision to block the news. As reported by Marie Woolf of the Globe and Mail, committee member Anthony Housefather, warned Google that he would refer the company “to the House of Commons for failing to send it internal communication and refusing its summons for its chief executive officer, Sundar Pichai” .
During the Monday March 10 committee meeting, Google indicated that it would end its experiment by March 16. Although the Google blog claimed that they were carrying out their news blocking experiment in the most responsible way, Conservative MP Kavin Waugh noted that “1.2 million Canadians were shut out, four per cent of the population that use Google. And you never told people you’re blocking them out. You just arbitrarily did it.” The committee noted their disappointment that “clear questions” were not being answered by Google representative Geremia and also for the fact that Google failed to turnover the internal documents that the committee requested which involved: “any and all internal or external communication, including but not limited to emails, text or other forms of messages related to actions, plans to take or options considered, in relation to Canada’s Bill C-18, including but not limited to those in relation to the testing and blocking of news sites in Canada.”
Google has also made their position clear on Bill C-11, the Online Streaming Bill. On March 8, 2023, in another blog post “An Update to our Canadian Creators and Users on Bill C-11”, Google shared its concern in the passing of Bill C-11 through the Senate which also received royal assent. Google, which owns YouTube, took issue with the government’s decision to include user generated content (UGC) as regulated content under Bill C-11. Google has asked the Canadian Government not to “regulate open platforms like broadcasters, and put specific language in the Bill to exclude UGC from CRTC regulation”.
The following chart presents Google’s communication reports for March, 2023, which were notably all on the topic of broadcasting and media.
| Communication Date | Lobbied | Subject Matters | Responsible Officer |
| 2023-03-01 | Lionel Fritz Adimi, Policy Advisor Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) Johanna Robinson, Deputy Director of Communications Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) Katie Telford, Chief of Staff Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) | Broadcasting, Media | Sabrina Geremia |
| 2023-03-04 | Anthony Housefather, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Public Services and Procurement House of Commons | Broadcasting, Media | Sabrina Geremia |
| 2023-03-09 | Ron Ahluwalia, Director of Policy | Office of the Minister, Canadian Heritage (PCH) Brian MacKay, Senior Policy Advisor | Office of the Minister, Canadian Heritage (PCH) Jude Welch, Chief of Staff | Office of the Minister , Canadian Heritage (PCH) | Broadcasting, Media | Sabrina Geremia |
| 2023-03-11 | Ashley Michnowski , Director of Communications | Office of the Minister, Canadian Heritage (PCH) Pablo Rodriguez, Minister of Canadian Heritage House of Commons Laura Scaffidi, Press Secretary and Communications Advisor | Office of the Minister, Canadian Heritage (PCH) | Broadcasting, Media | Sabrina Geremia |
| 2023-03-13 | Anthony Housefather, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Public Services and Procurement House of Commons | Broadcasting, Media | Sabrina Geremia |
| 2023-03-13 | Brian Clow, Deputy Chief of Staff Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) | Broadcasting, Media | Sabrina Geremia |
| 2023-03-17 | Anthony Housefather, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Public Services and Procurement House of Commons | Broadcasting, Media | Sabrina Geremia |
| 2023-03-23 | Julie Miville-Dechêne, Senator for Québec Senate of Canada Paula Simons, Senator for Alberta Senate of Canada | Broadcasting, Media | Sabrina Geremia |
| 2023-03-27 | Jean-Denis Garon, Member of Parliament for Mirabel House of Commons | Broadcasting, Media | Sabrina Geremia |
Google Canada Corporation: February 2023 Lobbying Summary
By: Brad McNeil, PhD Candidate (McMaster University)
Google ramped up its lobbying communications in February 2023. In February, Google held eleven meetings with various members of Canadian Government. Ten of these meetings were on the topics of “Broadcasting and Intellectual Property”. Undoubtedly, much of Google’s lobbying efforts remain focussed on Bill C-18 which is now under review in the Senate. Since publishing a blog post titled “It’s Time to Fix Bill C-18″ in November, 2022, Google has communicated several concerns with Bill C-18. Google worries the bill would lead to a link tax, forcing them to pay news organizations for links to articles regardless of their quality. Additionally, Google fears that the bill would subsidize “non-authoritative or biased news sources”. Google also worries that further amendments to Bill C-18 would mean that the company would have to extend payments to more types of media organizations like community radio stations.
On February 22 it was first reported by the Canadian Press, that Google would be “blocking some Canadian users from viewing news content” as a test of a potential response to Bill C-18 should the Bill be passed in the Senate. Google confirmed that the test would affect approximately 4% of Canadian Google users – which would affect roughly one million Canadians – and run for a period of five weeks. During the news blocking experiment, Canadians would still be able to access news sites by typing web addresses directly into their web browsers. However, searching for news through a typical Google search would no longer be a function of Google Search for effected users. The change applies to Google’s search engine as well as the Discover feature on Android devices, which also carries news and sports stories.
Google spokesperson Shay Purdy defended Google’s news blocking experiment noting “We’ve been fully transparent about our concern that C-18 is overly broad and, if unchanged, could impact products Canadians use and rely on every day. We remain committed to supporting a sustainable future for news in Canada and offering solutions that fix Bill C-18”. Google has attempted to frame their Canadian news search experiment as one among the many “thousands of tests” that the company runs each year to “asses any potential changes to Search”.
It should be noted that although Google claimed only 4% of Canadians would be affected by their experiment, there has been some speculation that the experiment has either affected more than 4% of Canadians or is disproportionately targeting journalists. President of News Media Canada, Paul Deegan, notes “we were somewhat surprised by the company’s statement that this only affected 4% of users, given the number of journalist who have come forward to say they noticed it”.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has called Google’s experiment a “terrible mistake” and expressed his disappointment that Google “decided that they’d rather prevent Canadians from accessing news than actually paying journalist for the work they do”. As response to Google’s news blocking experiment, the federal government has discussed pulling its own advertising from Google. Additionally, MPs of the Commons heritage committee, chaired by Hedy Fry, have requested a special meeting with Google executives to understand and question Google’s “damaging and reckless behaviour”. Liberal MP Anthony Housefather expressed his desire for Google chief executive Sundar Pichai to be called to testify and “explain to parliamentarians and Canadians why they have taken the action to test blocking of news sites in Canada”.
Heritage Minister Rodriguez condemned Google for using “scare tactics” to prevent the bill’s passage through the Senate. The Heritage Committee passed Liberal MP Chris Bittle’s motion which called for four of Google’s top executives to appear before the Parliamentary committee. The motion also requires Google to hand over all copies of “documents and messages related to its decision” to run the news blocking experiment. The Committee also requested a comprehensive list of Canadian news organizations being targeted by the company for blocking. Bittle’s motion calls on the following Google executives to appear before the Heritage Committee: Kent Walker, Google’s President of Global Affairs and Chief Legal Officer; Richard Gingras, Vice President of News at Google; Sabrina Geremia, Google’s Country Manager for Canada; and Sundar Pichai, Google’s CEO. Sabrina Geremia is the responsible officer for all communication reports filed by Google on the Registry of Lobbyist website between January and February 2023. She was also the author of the November Google blog post “It’s Time to Fix Bill C-18″. With the passing of Bittle’s motion, these Google executives would be required to appear before the Heritage Committee before March 6.
To further contextualize Google’s news blocking experiment as a response to Bill C-18, in October 2022, Meta also warned that it would block the sharing of news content in Canada on its platform as a response to Bill C-18. It should also be noted that Bill C-18 is based on Australian legislation which also received similar responses from Google and Meta. When Australia introduced the Australian Online News Act, Google “threatened to close its Australian search engine, while Facebook cut all third-party content from Australian accounts for more than a week.” Although Google and Meta tech struck deals with Australian media companies Google has also previously threatened to withhold its services within countries considering passing media legislation.
Spokeswoman Laura Scaffidi of Heritage Canada noted that such scare tactics did not work in Australia and will not work in Canada either because “Canadians won’t be intimidated.” Heritage Canada maintains that “At the end of the day, all we’re asking the tech giants to do is compensate journalists when they use their work” On February 1, 2023, Google LLC signed a contract with Invest in Canada worth $113,000 for work related to advertising services.
| Communication Date | Lobbied | Subject Matters | Responsible Officer |
| 2023-02-13 | Jude Welch, Chief of Staff Office of the Minister , Canadian Heritage (PCH) Brian MacKay, Senior Policy Advisor Office of the Minister, Canadian Heritage (PCH) Ron Ahluwalia, Director of Policy Office of the Minister, Canadian Heritage (PCH) | Broadcasting, Intellectual Property | Sabrina Geremia |
| 2023-02-13 | Rachael Thomas, Member of Parliament for Lethbridge House of Commons Andrew Scheer, Member of Parliament for Regina—Qu’Appelle House of Commons | Broadcasting, Intellectual Property | Sabrina Geremia |
| 2023-02-14 | Fabian Manning, Senator for Newfoundland & Labrador Senate of Canada | Broadcasting, Intellectual Property | Sabrina Geremia |
| 2023-02-14 | Scott Tannas, Senator for Alberta Senate of Canada | Broadcasting, Intellectual Property | Sabrina Geremia |
| 2023-02-14 | Tony Loffreda, Senator for Québec Senate of Canada | Intellectual Property, Broadcasting | Sabrina Geremia |
| 2023-02-15 | Peter M. Harder, Senator for Ontario Senate of Canada Brian Laghi, Director of Parliamentary Affairs Office of the Government Representative, Senate of Canada | Intellectual Property, Broadcasting | Sabrina Geremia |
| 2023-02-15 | Roy Rempel, Director of Policy Office of the Leader of the Opposition, Senate of Canada | Broadcasting, Intellectual Property | Sabrina Geremia |
| 2023-02-15 | Donna Dasko, Senator for Ontario Senate of Canada | Intellectual Property, Broadcasting | Sabrina Geremia |
| 2023-02-21 | Jaxson Khan, Policy Advisor Office of the Minister, Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada (ISED) | Privacy and Access to Information, Science and Technology | Sabrina Geremia |
| 2023-02-23 | Lionel Fritz Adimi, Policy Advisor Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) | Intellectual Property, Broadcasting | Sabrina Geremia |
| 2023-02-25 | Anthony Housefather, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Public Services and Procurement House of Commons | Intellectual Property, Broadcasting |
January2023 Update: Google
By: Brad McNeil, PhD Candidate (McMaster University)
This monthly lobbying report follows Google’s lobbying activities through the months of January 2023. The charts included in this blog post indicate that much of Google’s lobbying focus during this period relates to Bill C-18, the Online News Act which would force major tech platforms like Google and Meta to negotiate revenue sharing deals with Canadian media corporations for news links shared on their platforms. This blog post draws on news articles published during this lobbying period to contextualize Googles lobbying efforts.
Google Canada Corporation: January 2023 Lobbying Summary
While January 2023 was a quiet month for lobbying for most major tech companies, Google remained active reporting four meetings with various government officials. All four meetings were on the topic “Broadcasting and media”. More specifically, Google notes that its lobbying activities involve, “Communicating with the Government of Canada about Bill C-18 (An Act Respecting Online Communications Platforms), more specifically about the regulation of online content”. As noted in an earlier blog post, Bill C-18 would effectively force tech companies hosting digital platforms, like Google and Meta, to negotiate financial compensation with Canadian news organizations for news links shared on its digital platforms. Google’s four January meetings with government officials about broadcasting and media took place mere weeks after Bill C-18 passed in the House of Commons on December 14, 2023 . Bill C-18 is now headed for review in the Senate.
Bill C-18 is designed for major platforms like Google to “compensate journalism publications for reposting their content”. As noted by Canadian journalist Roger Belgrave, newspaper revenues have been depleted by platforms like Google and Facebook which often circulate news articles done by journalists on their platforms. Belgrave notes that, “big tech corporations have reportedly captured well north of 70 per cent of all digital ad revenue in Canada.” Tech platform’s grip on Canadian journalism has forced closure of many newspapers. According to Heritage Canada, “more than 450 news outlets have closed since 2008, with more than 60 of those closures coming in the last two years”. According to the National Ethnic Press and Media Council of Canada (NEPMCC), financial strain related to the COVID-19 pandemic caused many of Canada’s ethnic newspapers either stopped printing or shifted to digital modes of distribution eliminating print media. Ethnic newspapers hope that Bill C-18 will “give ethnic press the bargaining power with online platforms like Google to attract much needed advertising dollars.” According to the Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage, Bill C-18 would reportedly funnel $150 million per year into the news industry. Although some are skeptical that major broadcasting corporations like “the CBC, Bell, Shaw, and Rogers” would get the lions share of this funding.
| Communication Date | Lobbied | Subject Matters | Responsible Officer |
| 2023-01-19 | Julie Miville-Dechêne, Senator for Québec Senate of Canada Paula Simons, Senator for Alberta Senate of Canada | Media, Broadcasting | Sabrina Geremia |
| 2023-01-19 | Thomas Owen Ripley, Associate Assistant Deputy Minister, Cultural Affairs Canadian Heritage (PCH) | Broadcasting, Media | Sabrina Geremia |
| 2023-01-24 | Peter Harder, Senator for Ontario Senate of Canada | Broadcasting, Media | Sabrina Geremia |
| 2023-01-25 | Lionel Fritz Adimi, Policy Advisor, Policy and Cabinet Affairs Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) | Broadcasting, Media | Sabrina Geremia |
Google Canada Corporation: December 2022 Lobbying Summary
By: Brad McNeil, PhD Candidate (McMaster University)
Google lobbyists were not quite as active in December with three communications logs. Two were on the topic of “Broadcasting,” and “Media”—one with the Heritage Minister’s Chief of Staff and the Director of Communications of Canadian Heritage, and the other with a Policy Advisor in the Prime Minister’s Office. In December, Google also logged one communication with a policy advisor of the Minister, Environment and Climate Change Canada on the topics of “Environment,” and “Science and Technology.”
On December 14, 2022, Bill C-18 passed in the House of Commons and was headed for the Senate. The Bill would obligate Google and Facebook parent company Meta to share revenues with news publishers by forcing the companies to reach commercial deals.
| Communication Date | Lobbied | Subject Matter | Responsible Officer |
| 2022-12-01 | Eamonn McGuinty, Senior Policy Advisor Office of the Minister, Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) | Environment, Science and Technology | Sabrina Geremia |
| 2022-12-13 | Jude Welch, Chief of Staff Office of the Minister , Canadian Heritage (PCH) Ashley Michnowski, Director of Communications Office of the Minister , Canadian Heritage (PCH) | Broadcasting, Media | Sabrina Geremia |
| 2022-12-15 | Lionel Fritz Adimi, Policy Advisor, Policy and Cabinet Affairs Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) | Broadcasting, Media | Sabrina Geremia |
November 2022 Update: Google
By: Brad McNeil, PhD Student (McMaster University)
Google spent November 2022 lobbying about Bill C-11, the online streaming bill, and Bill C-18, the online news bill. Bill C-11 would give the Canadian Government powers to regulate digital streaming platforms and would have these platforms promote Canadian content online. Bill C-18 would effectively force tech companies hosting digital platforms, like Google and Meta, to negotiate financial compensation with news organizations for news links shared on digital platforms. This blog post looks at Googles lobbying activity through the month of November 2022 and reveals the lobbying communications reports that Google logged for the month with the Registry of Lobbyist website.
During the month of November 2022, Google Canada’s Managing Director Sabrina Geremia registered communications with Policy Directors and Advisors, Members of Parliament, and Members of the Senate for a total of six registered lobbying communications on the topic of “Media,” “Justice and Law Enforcement,” and “Broadcasting”. Geremia reported two other lobbying communications, one regarding “Science and Technology” with a Senator of Quebec, and the other about “Science and Technology,” and “Privacy and Access to Information” with a Policy Advisor atInnovation, Science and Economic Development Canada (ISED).
Google was active in blogging and lobbying on C-11 in November. In early October, YouTube (owned by Google), had published a blog post about Bill C-11 titled “Canada: Keep YouTube Yours,” setting out its position on the bill. The blog argued that Bill C-11 threatens the success of Canadian content creators because it aims to alter their audience, making it more difficult for Canadian creators to connect with audiences abroad. The YouTube blog notes, “over 90% of watch time on Canadian channels comes from outside Canada.” YouTube also warns about a future of state-controlled media claiming “Put into practice [Bill C-11], this means that when viewers come to the YouTube homepage, they’re served content that a Canadian Government regulator has prioritized, rather than content they are interested in.”
Google’s lobbying profile on the Registry of Lobbyist website notes that Google also actively lobbied on Bill C-11 about the regulation of online content. In early December, a Senate committee reported an amendment on Section 4.2 of Bill C-11 which may resolve some of Google’s concerns. The amendment would remove a revenue test that would have included revenue-generating user generated content as part of what the CRTC could regulate as a ‘program’ under the bill. The amendment meant that Bill C-11 would dramatically narrow the range of “amateur” user generated content that the bill could apply to on streaming platforms.
Google’s lobbying profile also notes that it actively lobbies about the regulation of online content under Bill C-18. Bill C-18 would obligate Google and Facebook parent company Meta to share revenues with news publishers by forcing the companies to reach commercial deals. On November 14, 2022, Google posted on its Public Policy blog that “It’s time to fix Bill C-18”. The blog post claimed that Bill C-18 “included measures… neither in the interests of Canadians, nor an effective response to the challenges facing the evolving news ecosystem.” The blog post raises concerns about negative effects of Bill C-18 for the Canadian public such as the “proliferation of misinformation” and supporting “large players” rather than local journalism as the Bill intends. The blog post also notes that Bill C-18 is “unworkable for platforms and unreasonable from a business standpoint”. Such complaints suggest the specific concerns that Google Canada is raising in lobbying meetings with government officials.
| Communication Date | Lobbied | Subject Matters | Responsible Officer |
| 2022-11-03 | Reem Zaia, Director of Policy & Legal Affairs | Office of the Minister | Public Safety Canada (PS) | Media, Justice and Law Enforcement, Broadcasting | Sabrina Geremia, Managing Director |
| 2022-11-03 | -Matthew Gray, Policy Advisor | Office of the Minister | Canadian Heritage (PCH) -Julie Harb , Policy Advisor | Office of the Minister | Canadian Heritage (PCH) -Ashley Michnowski, Director of Communications | Office of the Minister | Canadian Heritage (PCH) | Media, Justice and Law Enforcement, Broadcasting | Sabrina Geremia, Managing Director |
| 2022-11-09 | Jaxson Khan, Policy Advisor | Office of the Minister | Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada (ISED) | Science and Technology, Privacy and Access to Information | Sabrina Geremia, Managing Director |
| 2022-11-11 | Leo Housakos, Senator for Québec | Senate of Canada | Science and Technology | Sabrina Geremia, Managing Director |
| 2022-11-15 | Melissa Lantsman, Member of Parliament for Thornhill | House of Commons | Media, Justice and Law Enforcement, Broadcasting | Sabrina Geremia, Managing Director |
| 2022-11-15 | Rachael Thomas, Member of Parliament for Lethbridge | House of Commons – Marilyn Gladu, Member of Parliament for Sarnia—Lambton | House of Commons – Martin Shields, Member of Parliament for Bow River | House of Commons | Media, Justice and Law Enforcement, Broadcasting | Sabrina Geremia, Managing Director |
| 2022-11-15 | Mark Schaan, Senior Assistant Deputy Minister | Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada (ISED) – Owen Ripley, Associate Assistant Deputy Minister, Cultural Affairs | Canadian Heritage (PCH) | Media, Justice and Law Enforcement, Broadcasting | Sabrina Geremia, Managing Director |
| 2022-11-16 | Roy Rempel, Senior Policy Advisor | Office of the Leader of the Opposition | Senate of Canada | Media, Justice and Law Enforcement, Broadcasting | Sabrina Geremia, Managing Director |
October 2022 Update for Google
By: Helen Beny, PhD Candidate (McMaster University)
As Bill C-18, the Online News Act, and Bill C-11, the Online Streaming Act, move through the house and senate, tech companies have ramped up their lobbying. Facebook, Google, Amazon, IBM, Microsoft, Oracle and Netflix registered 34 registered lobbying communications in October (Figure 1). Meta (Facebook Canada Ltd.) and Alphabet (Google) focussed on C-18 and C-11.
Tech companies have registered 353 lobbying communications so far in 2022. According to our tech lobbying timeline, platforms such as Google and Amazon have increased their lobbying efforts in Canada and overall, this month bringing annual tech lobbying to an all-time annual high.
Google Canada Corporation: October 2022
In the past month, Google Canada’s Managing Director Sabrina Geremia registered communications with Members of Parliament, Policy Advisors to the Prime Minister, Canadian Heritage Office and Members of the Senate, accounting for nine registered lobbying communications to discuss “broadcasting and media”.
On October 14th, Colin McKay, head of Public Policy and Government Relations for Google Canada, appeared before the Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage (CHPC) as a witness to share their position on Bill C-18. McKay argues that the bill will not meet the government’s intended objective to support Canada’s local journalism industry. Instead, Google has argued that the Bill C-18 will lead to an increase in misinformation because it will reduce the access to legitimate news sources, and it could also lead to a link-tax. (The Canadian Heritage Committee denies this, saying they will not assign a “value” for clicks or links. )
To support their lobbying efforts, Google has commissioned Abacus Data to conduct a national public opinion survey to explore perceptions and views around Bill C-18. Ottawa criticized Google for their survey and stated that they are attempting to avoid accountability.
Google Canada Corporation: October 2022
| Communication Date | Lobbied | Subject Matters | Responsible Officer |
| 2022-10-04 | Martin Champoux, Member of Parliament for Drummond House of Commons | Broadcasting, Media | Sabrina Geremia, Managing Director |
| 2022-10-04 | Fritz-Lionel Adimi, Policy Advisor Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) Ben Chin, Senior Advisor Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) Brian Clow, Deputy Chief of Staff Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) Oz Jungic, Policy Advisor Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) | Broadcasting, Media | Sabrina Geremia, Managing Director |
| 2022-10-13 | Thomas Owen Ripley, Associate Assistant Deputy Minister, Cultural Affairs Canadian Heritage (PCH) | Broadcasting, Media | Sabrina Geremia, Managing Director |
| 2022-10-19 | Scott Tannas, Senator for Alberta Senate of Canada | Broadcasting, Media | Sabrina Geremia, Managing Director |
| 2022-10-19 | Matthew Gray, Policy Advisor | Office of the Minister, Canadian Heritage (PCH) Thomas Owen Ripley, Associate Assistant Deputy Minister, Cultural Affairs Canadian Heritage (PCH) | Broadcasting, Media | Sabrina Geremia, Managing Director |
| 2022-10-19 | Peter Julian, Member of Parliament for New Westminster—Burnaby House of Commons Jagmeet Singh, Member of Parliament for Burnaby South House of Commons | Broadcasting, Media | Sabrina Geremia, Managing Director |
| 2022-10-20 | Leo Housakos, Senator for Québec Senate of Canada | Broadcasting, Media | Sabrina Geremia, Managing Director |
| 2022-10-20 | Julie Miville-Dechêne, Senator for Québec Senate of Canada | Broadcasting, Media | Sabrina Geremia, Managing Director |
| 2022-10-24 | Fritz-Lionel Adimi, Policy Advisor Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) | Broadcasting, Justice and Law Enforcement, Media | Sabrina Geremia, Managing Director |
(Office of the Lobbying Commissioner 2022)
July and September 2022 Update for Google
By: Helen Beny, PhD Candidate (McMaster University)
As of July, Google has lobbied the government thirteen times regarding Media and Broadcasting, and they have met with various policy officers and members of Parliament. The uptick in lobbying efforts can be linked to Google’s position on Bill C-11, and in the past week they have launched several campaigns against the bill. Google (Alphabet) and owner of Youtube argues that it will impact their platform’s feeds. Other platforms and organizations such as Meta, movie studios (The Motion Picture Association), and Netflix have also outlined that Bill C-11 would give the broadcast regulator too much power over what content is presented on platforms in Canada. Bill C-11 has passed the House of Commons and is now in the Senate pending approval.
Google is also lobbying against Bill C-18 because it will require Google to share their revenue with news publishers. In Australia, February 25, 2022, a similar bill was also passed titled the News Media and Digital Platforms Mandatory Bargaining Code to protect their local news industry.
Google’s president of Global Affairs Kent Walker traveled to Ottawa on October 4th to lobby against both Bill C-11 and C-18. Heritage Minister Pablo Rodriguez finds that Google is attempting to intimidate Canadians with their campaign.
However, not all of Google’s lobbying strategies are recorded in Canada’s registry. Most recently, the Globe and Mail has reported that Chris Bittle, the Parliamentary Secretary to the Heritage Minister, has asked the Lobbying Commissioner to investigate the Digital First group for failing to disclose to the committee that they received a $100,000 fund from YouTube and TikTok. This is concerning because Mr. Benzie the founder of Digital First Canada group is huge critic of Bill C-11. In addition, Google has also offered to fund a lobbyist to represent independent news publishers to voice their concerns around the Online News Act. Thus far, the coalition of small publishers consists of more than 100 independent news outlets.
Google Canada Corporation Lobbying Summary (July – September 2022)
| Communication Date | DPOH, Position Title | Government Institution | Subject Matters | Lobbyist |
| 2022-09-23 | Lionel Fritz Adimi, Policy Advisor Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) | Broadcasting, Media | Sabrina Geremia, Managing Director |
| 2022-09-16 | Mike Morrice, Member of Parliament for Kitchener Centre House of Commons | Broadcasting, Media | Sabrina Geremia, Managing Director |
| 2022-09-13 | Bernadette Clement, Senator for Ontario Senate of Canada | Broadcasting, Media | Sabrina Geremia, Managing Director |
| 2022-09-13 | Marty Klyne, Senator for Saskatchewan Senate of Canada | Broadcasting, Media | Sabrina Geremia, Managing Director |
| 2022-09-08 | Thomas Owen Ripley, Associate Assistant Deputy Minister, Cultural Affairs Canadian Heritage (PCH) | Broadcasting, Media | Sabrina Geremia, Managing Director |
| 2022-09-07 | Donna Dasko, Senator for Ontario Senate of Canada | Broadcasting, Media | Sabrina Geremia, Managing Director |
| 2022-09-01 | Ian Foucher, Chief of Staff | Office of the Minister, Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada (ISED) | Science and Technology, Broadcasting, Privacy and Access to Information, Economic Development, Media | Sabrina Geremia, Managing Director |
| 2022-08-30 | Karen Sorensen, Senator for Alberta Senate of Canada | Broadcasting, Media | Sabrina Geremia, Managing Director |
| 2022-08-23 | Nadia Kadri, Director of Policy | Office of the Minister of Tourism and Associate Minister of Finance, Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada (ISED) | Broadcasting, Taxation and Finance, Media | Sabrina Geremia, Managing Director |
| 2022-08-08 | Paula Simons, Senator for Alberta Senate of Canada | Broadcasting, Media | Sabrina Geremia, Managing Director |
| 2022-07-22 | Tyler Meredith, Director of Economic Strategy and Planning | Office of the Minister, Finance Canada (FIN) | Broadcasting, Media | Sabrina Geremia, Managing Director |
| 2022-07-18 | Lionel Fritz Adimi, Policy Advisor Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) | Broadcasting, Media | Sabrina Geremia, Managing Director |
| 2022-07-15 | Samir Kassam, Policy Advisor | Office of the Minister of International Trade, Global Affairs Canada (GAC) | Broadcasting, Media | Sabrina Geremia, Managing Director |
| 2022-07-15 | Jaxson Khan , Policy Advisor | Office of the Minister, Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada (ISED) Peter Opdam , Policy Advisor | Office of the Minister, Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada (ISED) | Broadcasting, Media | Sabrina Geremia, Managing Director |
| 2022-07-12 | Lionel Fritz Adimi, Policy Advisor Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) | Broadcasting, Media | Sabrina Geremia, Managing Director |
| 2022-07-11 | Vance Badawey, Member of Parliament for Niagara Centre House of Commons | Broadcasting, Media | Sabrina Geremia, Managing Director |
| 2022-07-06 | Philip Lawrence, Member of Parliament for Northumberland—Peterborough South House of Commons | Broadcasting, Media | Josie Sabatino, Consultant |
| 2022-07-05 | Ron Ahluwalia , Director of Policy | Office of the Minister , Canadian Heritage (PCH) | Broadcasting, Media | Sabrina Geremia, Managing Director |
(Office of the Commissioner 2022)