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5 | The IFP -H alton H ills | T hursday,N ovem ber 5,2020 theifp.ca 155 Main St. E., Milton (647) 535-5070 @COMFORTBRAS www.mostcomfortablebras.com PRIVATE APPOINTMENT ONLY BRA BOUTIQUE. Sizes AA-M FEATURING THE MOST COMFORTABLE BRAS FROM AROUND THE WORLD. BY PAULINE L O V E Y O U R B R E A S T S A G A I N News Media Canada, of which this publication is a member, is asking the Ca- nadian government to im- plement new measures that would save media companies from being bled dry by tech giants such as Google and Facebook. Google and Facebook control approximately 80 per cent of the digital ad- vertising market in Cana- da, News Media Canada says. Advertising dollars are what keep traditional news organizations running, but those monies are going to foreign-owned companies instead. Tech companies are able to present locally pro- duced news content on their own platforms and sell advertising around it, without compensation to the media company that produced the articles. Furthermore, even when advertisers pay spe- cifically to advertise on a news site, Google and Face- book keep most of that rev- enue, while at the same time gathering data on news media site readers and advertisers for their own purposes. This needs to change, News Media Canada says, and it could change if the federal government imple- ments the Australian mod- el here. "Some of our readers and advertisers do not real- ize that their local newspa- per is also affected by the web giants. Our local con- tent can be picked up for use and consumed for free without any consideration of the efforts that went in to producing a story," said Kelly Montague, Torstar Vice President of Commu- nity Brands. "Local jour- nalism is expensive to pro- duce. Local investigative journalism costs even more. And local journal- ism is so important to com- munities." The Australian model would allow publishers to collectively negotiate com- pensation from tech com- panies for the use of their content, a code of conduct would stop web monopo- lies from using new algo- rithms and other technolo- gies to expand their market dominance, and web giants would be subject to fines in the millions of dollars for a single infraction. None of these actions would have a cost to the taxpayer. "Our local advertisers are really surprised when we point out how the tech giants make money from our efforts and essentially take money out of local communities," Montague said. "Google and Face- book swipe our content, place ads around it (ads that at one time appeared in our newspaper) and make money off of our lo- cal stories. "Many of our partners do not make an immediate connection, though under- stand once we explain and understand why we are up- set." News Media Canada rep- resents more than 90 per cent of news media reader- ship in Canada. Its mem- bership includes Torstar, Glacier Media, Black Press, Postmedia, the Globe and Mail, La Presse, Quebecor and Brunswick News. Minister of Canadian Heritage Steven Guil- beault said the government recognizes the market im- balance between content creators and those who benefit from its use, and that the government is committed to creating a comprehensive and fairer digital regulatory frame- work. "It is about fairness: those who benefit from the Canadian ecosystem must also contribute to it, whether they operate in the broadcasting sector or are involved in news con- tent sharing. "This means ensuring that our online environ- ment does not unduly dis- advantage Canadian news publishers and allows them to continue to do their essential work which is to empower and inform our communities, in times of crisis and beyond, for the benefit of our democracy," he said in an emailed state- ment. Guilbeault added the government is looking at other jurisdictions, includ- ing Australia and France, in discussions for a made- in-Canada framework. LEVELLING THE DIGITAL PLAYING FIELD NEWS MEDIA ASK FOR FEDERAL GOVERNMENT'S HELP FROM TECH GIANTS Torstar is among the national news organizations seeking government assistance against tech giants. Torstar graphic