Prime Minister Mark Carney says Ottawa’s decision to scrap a levy on large foreign streaming services was done to help Canadian consumers, denying that it was due to pressure from the Trump administration.
Canada’s federal regulator imposed a 5 percent levy on major streaming services in 2024 and raised it to 15 percent in May of this year, requiring that they spend 15 percent of revenue earned in Canada on Canadian programming and related funding.
Last month, Ottawa opted to replace the streaming contribution requirements with $600 million a year in government funding, in the wake of concerns that the 15 percent levy could increase streaming costs and amid ongoing criticism from the Trump administration, which is set to impose 50 percent tariffs on about $28 billion in Canadian goods on Aug. 19….