That Facebook and Instagram will block access to reports from Canadian media, their parent company Meta said, reacting to a law just passed that forces Internet giants to pay to distribute local media content.

“Today we are confirming that news content will no longer be available on Facebook and Instagram for users in Canada,” Meta said in a statement, noting that it had warned “repeatedly” that it would take this step.

“If the government can’t stand up for Canadians against the internet giants, who will?” shot back Heritage Minister Pablo Rodriguez. Facebook had “no obligation” to cut off that access, as the law had not yet officially come into effect, he added.

The minister’s office also underlined that “a meeting was held this week with Facebook and Google and that it remains open to new talks.

The new law forces digital giants to enter into fair trade agreements with Canadian media outlets for the content they publish on their platforms, or face mandatory arbitration.

Last month, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau accused Meta of blocking some Canadians’ access to online news as part of a trial, saying the company is “deeply irresponsible and out of touch” when it refuses to pay journalists for their work.

Her opposition to the bill, the prime minister said, is “wrong and dangerous to our democracy and our economy.”

In recent months, Meta and Google have announced that they are testing a small portion of the Canadian population by restricting their access to informative websites.

The new law, which is heavily criticized by the two Silicon Valley giants, is aimed at supporting Canada’s media sector which, according to the minister, is “in crisis”.

Google spokeswoman Jen Kreider said the company “will do everything possible to avoid an outcome that no one wants” and that it seeks to work with the government “to move forward.”

The internet giant has proposed amendments to the bill, but Kreider said on Thursday that “so far none of our concerns have been taken into account”.

More than 450 Canadian media outlets have been closed since 2008, according to the ministry of heritage.

The inspiration for this bill was given by another that was adopted in 2021 by Australia and was the first of its kind in the world. It was easily adopted, since Facebook and Google had entered into agreements to avoid being subject to mandatory arbitration.

Faced with the same situation, the European Union introduced in 2019 “neighbourhood rights” which are expected to allow publishers of publications to be paid for content used by Internet platforms.

After protesting, Google in November signed deals with French newspapers, a world first. Agence France-Presse signed an agreement with Google at the end of 2021, according to which the agency is paid for five years for its content presented by the giant American company, as well as two commercial contracts, also for five years.