Streamers looking to clawback millions after Liberals pivot on Canadian content
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Large U.S. streaming companies have started asking Canadian content groups for their money back after it was revealed that Ottawa plans to scrap multi-million dollar contribution requirements, The Wire Report has learned.
Amazon.com Inc., Apple Inc., Netflix Inc., and other companies were required to redirect five per cent of all Canadian revenues to a pot that would benefit organizations like the Canada Media Fund, Black Screen Office Fund, and Independent Local News Fund after the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) implemented the policy under the Online Streaming Act in 2024. This decision was expected to annually generate an additional $200-million for the Canadian cultural industry.
The deadline for the first payments was Aug. 31, 2025, though several streamers fought and won a stay on the funding at the Federal Court of Appeal, where the companies are challenging the policy. However, despite the stay, millions were still transferred to a centralized trust from streamers, including a portion of funds that were doled out to select agencies over the last year.
Now, after a court filing unearthed last week confirmed the government’s plans to “eliminate” the five per cent funding requirement, the streamers are bringing the receipts.
One source, who wished to remain anonymous in order to speak freely, told The Wire Report certain funding groups have started receiving calls from an accounting firm asking for the transactions to be reversed.
Another source had initially confirmed the development, but later said they had misspoken.
Three separate funding agencies told The Wire Report they had yet to be contacted by streamers or an accounting firm seeking to recoup the money.
Meanwhile, the CRTC did not respond to a request for comment.
Many organizations had not spent any money received from the streaming companies, owing to the ongoing litigation surrounding the policy that facilitated the transfer.
“Because the CRTC decision on base contributions was being appealed, all amounts received have been held in reserve,” said one organization’s representative.
The future of the court case is unclear, as the presiding Justice David Stratas has asked Ottawa whether it’s a waste of time to continue the challenge, should Ottawa be planning to reverse the policy, though no final decision has been made.
Not clear how Liberals can reverse CRTC policy: sources
The next payment deadline for streamers had been scheduled for the end of August. While the Liberal government’s rhetoric has implied the payments won’t need to be made, various sources said the situation was not that simple.
In effect, the five-per-cent contribution requirement is implemented by the independent, arm’s-length CRTC—and Ottawa has limited tools to influence its decisions.
Last week, Prime Minister Mark Carney (Nepean, Ont.) acknowledged the federal government’s pivot on the subject and promised to issue a new policy direction to the CRTC that will “focus on affordability.”
“Most Canadians have one or two of these streamers [and] it’s real money,” Carney told reporters in Red Deer, Alta. “This stuff adds up.”
“There’s a better way to do it [and] we’ll give the direction accordingly.”
However, Ottawa does not have the jurisdiction to overturn CRTC decisions. Government policy directions are designed to offer broad, high-level missives to guide regulatory decisions, rather than manage specific case files, according to one source.
“They’ve messed up,” they said. “They’re in a bit of a pickle now because the minister announced the [CRTC’s] decision was essentially null and void, but the government doesn’t have the authority to nullify a broadcasting decision.”
“They’ve said it doesn’t count anymore. Yes, it does. It’s in full effect.”
The source theorized that the Liberals, benefitting from a majority in the House of Commons, could repeal the Online Streaming Act or, more likely, introduce targeted legislative amendments that would force the CRTC to reverse its decision.
But, they continued, excluding changes to the law, Carney, Canadian Identity Minister Marc Miller (Ville-Marie—Le Sud-Ouest—Île-des-Sœurs, Que.), and the government would have to ask the CRTC to hold a hearing into the subject, which could eventually lead to a policy change.
“They could order the commission to hold a hearing and, presumably, they’ll say they’re ordering the CRTC to hold a new hearing to consider this,” they said. “But that would freeze the old decision. It doesn’t revoke it.”
The Liberals are seemingly aware of the government’s hamstrung authority on this file, as evidenced by its response to Conservative attacks earlier this year asking Ottawa to get rid of what the official opposition has called the ‘Netflix tax.’
The Tory campaign came after the CRTC made another decision that would have upped the contribution requirements to 15 per cent of domestic revenues, which faced staunch backlash from American industry players and U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration.
“While Canadians are struggling with the cost of filling up their tank and their grocery cart, they don’t need another tax on watching their favourite show, movie, or listening to their favourite song,” wrote Conservative MP Rachael Thomas (Lethbridge, Alta.) on social media.
“The Carney Liberals must reject the CRTC’s decision.”
In response, a government source told The Wire Report that the Conservatives’ request was “not permitted under law,” owing to the government’s limited powers under the Broadcasting Act.
The Liberals eventually ordered the CRTC to review its decision, an announcement that came with a $600-million “immediate” injection into Canadian cultural groups (that has yet to be allocated), which was later revealed to be representative of the Carney government’s approach to forcing streamers to contribute to the cultural landscape.
Davis Legree is the editor of The Wire Report where this piece was first published. The Wire Report, owned by Hill Times Publishing, covers the intersection of business, technology, and government, with a special focus on the regulatory sphere. Sign up here for a free trial.
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Editor’s note: This story was updated on Aug. 10, 2026, at 12:12 p.m. after one source who had confirmed streamers were contacting funding organizations told The Wire Report they had misspoke.