Committee calls for taxation, online advertising changes to help media industry

OTTAWA – A parliamentary committee is releasing a long-awaited report with 20 recommendations aimed at helping Canada's slumping media industry adapt to the rapidly evolving landscape.

They include requiring the publicly funded CBC to eliminate advertising on its digital platforms; letting media companies deduct taxes on digital advertising on Canadian-owned platforms; and a tax credit for print outlets for a portion of their digital investments.

Liberal MP Hedy Fry, chair of the heritage committee that produced the study, says the aim of the recommendations is to level the playing field for Canada's media companies.

The heritage committee has spent more than a year studying the industry, which has been steadily losing advertising revenue and market shares to online giants such as Facebook, Netflix and Google.

In its report, the committee is also recommending a five per cent tax on broadband Internet services to lift an industry struggling to adapt to technological changes and evolving consumer habits.

The proposal would add hundreds of millions of dollars in revenues to the Canadian Media Fund, which already receives a levy on cable bills to finance the production of Canadian content.

The tax, levied on broadband Internet providers, would apply to high-speed Internet services that allow for the streaming of music, movies and TV shows, but not to slower and less costly services.