Canada’s screen sector will have to wait a little longer to see the passage of Bill C-11.

The bill is currently awaiting its third reading at the Senate, which has adjourned until Jan. 31, 2023. Amendments from the Standing Senate Committee on Transport and Communications were adopted by the Senate on Wednesday (Dec. 14).

Also known as the Online Streaming Act, Bill C-11 is a modernization of the Broadcasting Act, which was last updated more than 30 years ago. If passed, the bill will bring foreign-owned online undertakings such as Netflix, YouTube and Disney+ under CRTC regulation. It is understood that the bill will be sent back to the House of Commons to review and vote on the amendments adopted by the Senate before it receives royal assent.

Of the 73 amendments proposed during the committee’s clause-by-clause review, 26 were approved by the committee. Among them is a modification to clause 4.2, limiting the scope of exemptions to clause 4.1, which stated that user-generated content would not be regulated by the CRTC. The amendment removes an exemption of programs that “directly or indirectly generates revenues.”

Section 4.2 was a subject of heavy debate for both the Senate committee, and the previous Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage, over whether its wording could lead to Canadian YouTube accounts falling under CRTC regulation. The debate came in spite of strong wording from both the CRTC and Canadian Heritage that the Commission is not interested in regulating social media content, only the platforms themselves.

Another key amendment was the removal of a clause that online undertakings would be exempt from the Status of the Artist Act. Concerns over the provision were raised during the committee witness testimonies, including from the Directors Guild of Canada and the Alliance of Canadian Cinema, Television and Radio Artists, which warned that it would weaken the bill and remove basic protections for artists working in Canada.

One crucial amendment for the industry that did not pass during clause-by-clause review was a provision in the bill that allowed foreign-owned online undertakings to “make the greatest practicable use of Canadian creative,” rather than the “maximum” and “predominant” use expected of Canadian broadcasting undertakings.

Concerns were raised by industry stakeholders that the provision would create a two-tiered system in Canada, with streaming services less inclined to hire domestic talent to meet Cancon requirements once they’re brought into the Canadian regulatory system. However, members of the government raised opposing concerns that existing trade agreements would complicate an attempt to mandate the use of Canadian labour for U.S.-based companies.

The failed passage of the proposed amendment was criticized by industry stakeholders, including the Coalition for the Diversity of Cultural Expression (CDCE), for the potential risk to cultural jobs within Canada’s screen sector. ”To preserve cultural sovereignty in the digital environment, Canada must resist foreign pressures and have legislation that truly restores equity in our ecosystem,” said Hélène Messier, CEO of Quebec producer’s association AQPM and CDCE co-chair.

Other additions to the bill include a clause that states CBC/Radio-Canada cannot broadcast advertorial content; the inclusion “Black and other racialized communities” through the Act; the removal of clause seven, giving the CRTC further independence from government; and age-verification provision for online undertakings.