Canada buckles and accepts Google pennies to remove legal threat

With days ticking down to the December deadline, the Canadian Government and publishers have accepted a reported $100 million from the search giant

Breaking news

With days ticking down to the December deadline, the Canadian Government and publishers have buckled and accepted a reported $100 million deal with Google.

It’s less than half the $234 million the Government wanted, and a fifth of what publishers were demanding.

It also remains unclear whether this is a one-off deal or whether the Government has secured a multi-year commitment from the search giant.

Google, which earns multi-billions in Canada, will barely notice the pay-off, and is now safe from the Online News Act (also known as Bill C-18) which would have forced it to pay Canadian publishers annually.

I spoke with a senior Canadian news executive this morning.