Application of the Local Independent Television Station Group (LITS)

To Commence Collective Bargaining with Meta

Pursuant to Sections 20 and 21 of the Online News Act

February 4, 2026
Revised February 23, 2026

Table of Contents

• Precis
• LITS are an eligible group of news businesses
• Meta is an operator of digital news intermediaries
• Meta does not fall under an exemption
• Meta is not making any separate payments to LITS for news content
• Contrary to arguments filed by Meta in response to the Commission staff inquiry, Meta is clearly making LITS news available
• There is no “volume” test for making available under the Online News Act
• Meta is neither consistent in making news outlet links “inaccessible”, nor is this sufficient
• Other Meta arguments that it is not making LITS news available are false or irrelevant
• Meta’s procedural obligations in response to this Application necessitate an immediate response
• Meta’s responses to the Commission’s inquiry may warrant penalties
• Meta must be monitored for potential undue preference
• The broader damage to Canada’s news ecosystem of Meta’s actions should no longer be ignored
• If bargaining is to be in good faith, it must start now
• Conclusion

Precis

This is an application filed on behalf of the local independent television stations
group (LITS) to commence bargaining pursuant to sections 20 and 21 of the
Online News Act (the “Act”). This Application will demonstrate that, contrary to
its submissions to the Commission, Meta has been making LITS news available
on a regular basis since the Online News Act came into force December 19, 2023
and therefore qualifies as an operator of at least one digital news intermediary
under the Act.

1. Notwithstanding this reality, Meta has insisted it does not operate digital news
   intermediaries as defined under the Act and therefore has not notified the CRTC
   pursuant to section 7(1). While, as a consequence, Meta platforms do not
   currently appear on the Commission’s list of digital news intermediaries
   pursuant to subsection 8(1),2 the Commission’s maintenance of this list is an
   obligation that is separate and apart from Meta’s obligations both to notify and
   bargain. This Application, therefore, serves both as a notice of intent to bargain
   and as a request for the CRTC to deem Meta an operator of digital news
   intermediaries and to have its platforms, Facebook and Instagram, added to the
   list of digital news intermediaries to whom the Act applies. We note, moreover,
   that the latter is not legally contingent on Meta notifying the CRTC pursuant to
   subsection 7(1), and therefore negotiation or bargaining sessions should commence immediately per subsection 19(1)(a).
2. We accordingly enclose:
   
   1. Evidence of Meta making available LITS news at Schedule A;
   2. Evidence of Meta making competing news available through direct links while blocking LITS news links at Schedule B; and
   3. The written package of information necessary to initiate the mandatory bargaining process at Schedules C & D.

LITS are an eligible group of news businesses

4 .The LITS group is well known to the Commission as the joint representative of
Canada’s truly independent local television stations. News providing LITS
currently comprise fifteen local independent television stations serving twelve
1 Obligations under the Online News Act were to come into effect no later than 180 days after June
22, 2023, the day Bill C-18 received Royal Assent. https://www.canada.ca/en/canadianheritage/news/2023/07/the-online-news-act-next-steps.html 2 Available at https://crtc.gc.ca/eng/industr/lstdigit.htm
Canadian markets with locally reflective news and information programming, from St. John’s, Newfoundland to Victoria, B.C.:3

• Newfoundland Broadcasting (1 station in Newfoundland — CJON-DT, St.
  John’s)
•  RNC Media (4 stations in Quebec – CHOT-DT and CFGS-DT, Gatineau;
  CFEM-DT, Rouyn-Noranda; CFVS-DT, Val-d’Or)
•  Télé Inter-Rives (3 stations in Quebec – CIMT-DT and CFTF-DT, Rivière
  du Loup; CHAU-DT, Carleton)
•  Channel Zero (1 station in Ontario — CHCH-DT, Hamilton)
•  Thunder Bay Electronics (2 stations in Ontario — CKPR-TV and CHFDTV, Thunder Bay)
•  Miracle Channel (1 station in Alberta — CJIL-DT, Lethbridge)
•  Pattison Media (2 stations in BC – CFJC-TV & Kamloops; CKPG-TV,
  Prince George)
•  CHEK (1 station in BC — CHEK-TV, Victoria)

5. LITS members operate in Canada’s smallest TV markets. Small in market size,
does not, however, mean small in impact. LITS are among the most prized,
effective and efficient operators of local television services in Canada. Among
other things, together, we:

• Serve more than 3.5 million Canadians, or roughly 10% of Canada’s
  population, many living in some of the sparsest parts of this country
• Employ over a hundred full-time and roughly thirty part-time journalists
  and/or reporters, not including news anchors, ENG/operations personnel,
  meteorologists and other technical personnel and staff needed to deliver
  local news programming;
• Provide over 250 hours of quality, locally relevant news and information
  programming every week, 52 weeks a year;
• Provide vital local community news and information 24/7 through our local
  websites, email newsletters, portals and affiliated news outlets;
• Gift through the donation of airtime and the involvement of our personnel
  in on the order of $20 million across the country every year to charitable
  and community public service endeavours; and
• Are relied on virtually every day as our viewers’ primary source of news
  and information.4

6. In many markets, LITS are the sole, or one of two, professional daily local news
source(s). We provide local news and information without the benefit of the
3 Two other independent local station groups, Zoomer TV and YesTV, provide non-news
programming.
4 Source: CAB 2024 ILNF Annual Report and LITS members.
5
strong synergies and deep pockets of larger broadcast groups and network
competitors

7. All members of LITS either are or have eligible news business as defined in
section 2 of the Act, and attested to that fact as required under the exemption
process that took place for Google.

8. While this process did not necessitate the Commission itself initially listing
LITS entities as eligible news business under subsection 29(1) of the Act,5 we
note that most LITS are now identified as news businesses that have received
funding under the Online News Act on the Commission’s website in a document
entitled Status Report on the Implementation of the Online News Act 2024-2025.6

9. This listing satisfies the requirements of subsection 29(1) of the Act for those
LITS entities so identified.7 Such LITS should therefore immediately be deemed
to be entitled to initiate bargaining with Meta pursuant to section 20.8

10. In order to permit those LITS not publicly identified on the Commission’s
website to bargain with the group, LITS urge the Commission to issue a new
public list of eligible news businesses on its website as soon as possible. This
could largely be accomplished by republishing the Canadian Journalism
Collective’s (CJC’s) current list, given that the Commission’s listing is based on
data earlier published by the CJC.9

11. LITS submit that, given the timelines involved in bargaining, no prejudice would
be suffered by Meta by permitting those LITS who are not currently on the
Commission’s list of eligible news business to be added at a forthcoming date. In
any event, LITS recognize that this would be dependent on how and when the
Commission updates its list.

12. LITS are seeking compensation for the making available by Meta of LITS news
on Facebook and Instagram since the Act came into force on December 19, 2023.

Meta is an operator of digital news intermediaries

13. Meta is an clearly operator of at least one digital news intermediary as defined
in section 2 of the Act, namely Facebook. Instagram now also appears to qualify
as a digital news intermediary under the Act.10

14. Parliament’s intent was clearly that Meta be covered by the Act. Moreover, as
apparently acknowledged in Meta’s letter to CRTC staff of December 20, 2024,11
Meta meets the criterion of “a significant bargaining power imbalance between
an operator and news businesses” as set out in section 6 of the Act and section 2
of the Regulations.

15.Given the Regulation on point, for the purposes of this Application, it is not
necessary to interpret whether “a significant bargaining power imbalance” can
be said to exist between LITS and Meta. We note, however, that in terms of size,
Meta is at least four orders of magnitude larger than any LITS, and its
“strategic advantage” and “prominent market position” is evidenced by, among
other things, the fact that it chose to limit the making available of news in
Canada to no apparent great detriment to its global business.

Meta does not fall under an exemption

16. Meta has not requested an exemption order pursuant to section 4 of the Act and therefore is subject to bargaining.

Meta is not making any separate payments to LITS for news content

17.LITS confirm that no payments to LITS for the use of their news content have
been made in accordance with a licence or agreement pursuant to subsection
25(a) of the Act. Nor is there any relevant tariff approved by the Copyright
Board for the use of that content pursuant to subsection 25(b) of the Act.

18. Accordingly, LITS news content is an appropriate subject of mediation sessions
or final offer arbitration.

Meta is clearly making LITS news available

19. Commission staff initiated an inquiry on October 2, 2024.
20. Meta responded on October 17, 2024 stating:

Meta ended news availability on Facebook and Instagram for users in Canada.

Meta has taken robust steps to ensure its platforms are not digital news intermediaries.

24. As evidenced by Schedule A, Meta’s responses are misleading or false.
25. The examples constitute “news content” under section 2 of the Act.

There is no “volume” test for making available

26. The test for “making available” is defined as reproduction or facilitation of access.

2(2) For the purposes of this Act, news content is made available if:

1. the news content is reproduced; or
2. access is facilitated by any means.

Other Meta arguments are false or irrelevant

• Meta did not end news availability in Canada;
• Its steps are insufficient;
• Its public policy is irrelevant;
• Users can still post news;
• Monitoring measures are ineffective.

Conclusion

59. Millions of Canadians continue to receive news on Meta platforms.
60. Meta should immediately be required to enter into collective bargaining.

Schedules

Schedule A – Evidence of Meta making LITS news available

[See separate document.]

Schedule B – Evidence of Meta making news competitors to LITS directly available

[See separate document.]

Schedule C – Written package of information necessary to initiate the mandatory bargaining process

[See separate document.]

Schedule D – Representative’s Attestation

[See separate document.]

*** End of Document ***