Following news of the breach, experts are amplifying pre-existing concerns over Bill C-34, the Safe Social Media Act, saying the incident could be a presage of what’s to come under the proposed legislation’s social media ban for children under 16 years.
The government spent $172.8-million on traditional and wireless phone lines in 2024-25, and the BCE Inc. subsidiary’s share of the pot was almost $122-million.
‘We were told that culture would not be a bargaining chip in the discussions regarding CUSMA,’ says Marie-Julie Desrochers of the Coalition for the Diversity of Cultural Expression, but ‘it appears that it has become one.’
Bill C-34, the Safe Social Media Act, would require social media platforms to prevent underage users from accessing their websites, but allow firms to apply for an exemption to the ban if they can prove they’ve implemented ‘significant safeguards.’
As Canada pushes toward its goal of connecting every household to high-speed internet by 2030, exorbitant infrastructure costs and geographical challenges risk leaving Indigenous communities behind.
‘This is catastrophic for Canadian and Québécois media and creators,’ said Bloc Leader Yves-François Blanchet, calling the Liberals’ new policy direction on the CRTC implementing the Online Streaming Act as putting ‘down our arms before even starting a negotiation.’
‘It provides a small degree of operational relief,’ says Christa Dickenson of the monthly three-cent-per-subscriber boost, ‘but the reality is that [cable] subscriber losses are accelerating, and this increase has been a long time coming.’
The NDP leader is pushing for ‘a public network for food, phones, and internet.’ Political dynamics will make it hard to achieve, say politicos, and even those fighting for a more accessible industry wonder if the idea is realistic.
Artificial Intelligence Minister Evan Solomon has previously said he expects to table his new AI strategy in the first quarter of 2026.