On a weeknight, you can probably find Netflix or Amazon Prime on the TV in any living room in Toronto or Vancouver. Disney+, perhaps. Technically, the Canadian shows—those made in Halifax or Winnipeg, those with Indigenous perspectives or French-language tales from Quebec—remain. However, they are becoming more difficult to locate, appearing several scrolls below algorithmically pushed American content that is more expensive to produce and easier to sell internationally. The entire issue can be summed up in that silent funeral of regional storytelling.
Although Canadian broadcasters have been raising this issue for years, the discussion has been much more heated when the CRTC decided to formalize contribution rules for international streaming services that operate in Canada. Platforms that generate more than C$25 million in Canadian sales each year must donate 15% of their earnings to domestic content funds under the new structure. On paper, it makes sense. The problem is that, despite the new regulations, traditional Canadian broadcasters are still subject to a 25% requirement, which is higher than that of their international rivals. That disparity hurts businesses that are already losing users to the very platforms that are now subject to partial regulation.
It is worthwhile to consider the historical imbalance. For many years, Canadian television firms funded local content with up to 45% of their earnings. The entire structure of a domestic media sector, including the productions, writers’ rooms, and regional news divisions, was funded by that money. In the meantime, Canadian subscriber fees were collected by Netflix and its competitors, who made no contributions. Not because they were disobeying any regulations. just because the regulations had not yet caught up to them.
Beneath the financial argument comes a larger cultural one that is not insignificant. The media in the United States has historically dominated Canadian operations. The issue was always pragmatic rather than abstract. Canadian stories cannot be produced without regulatory assistance. Programming in indigenous languages is not supported. Outside of Quebec, French-language productions have trouble attracting viewers. The CRTC’s mandate has traditionally been based on the idea that a smaller culture sitting next to the world’s loudest media behemoth cannot be protected by markets alone.
Washington’s reaction has been severe as expected. Canada’s streaming charges have been denounced by American lawmakers and business associations as unfair trade practices that target American businesses. The streaming platforms themselves have filed legal challenges against the contribution requirements, and there have been threats of tariffs and trade investigations. As political pressure mounts on Ottawa to reconsider, a sizable portion of mandated funding remains frozen in legal limbo. Some of those challenges might be successful. The political climate makes Canadian officials wary of being perceived as publicly resisting American economic pressure, and the legal reasons are not without substance.
It’s difficult to ignore the irony as you watch this play out. The same platforms who claim they shouldn’t be subject to Canadian content regulations have also spent years claiming that they are essential cultural contributors, supporting regional economies, hiring local crews, and backing original Canadian productions. Both statements may be partially accurate. However, there is a distinction between having to contribute to a system that is intended to function independently of the commercial interests of any one platform and having the option to support local content when it fits your algorithm.
Money is not the only factor in the conflict. It concerns who gets to choose the narratives that Canadians see about themselves and who is responsible for funding those choices. Regardless of how this is resolved, the streaming behemoths will continue to show on Canadian screens. However, it is still really unclear whether they function as participants in a cultural environment or only as extractors from one.
