In 2023, the Canadian government passed the Online Streaming Act which allows the Cadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) to assess fees on international streaming platforms. In a new insight, Director of Technology and Innovation Policy Jeffrey Westling argues that trade negotiations should focus on requiring Canada to remove these fees or repealing the Online Streaming Act to allow U.S. media companies to compete on equal terms with their Canadian counterparts.

Key points:

• Canada recently implemented a 5-percent tax on non-domestic digital media companies’ online streaming revenue, which mainly targets U.S. technology firms such as Netflix, Google, and Amazon.
• While this tax could directly cost firms up to $750 million if Canada decides to apply the fee broadly, Canadian law also allows regulators to impose a variety of additional restrictions on U.S. companies including mandating they produce or acquire Canadian content, limiting platform flexibility, increasing compliance costs, and harming user choice.
• As the Trump Administration continues trade negotiations, it should continue to prioritize the elimination of digital taxes and regulations that target American firms in favor of domestic rivals.

Read the analysis.