Quebec Considers New Legislation Mandating Increased Francophone Content on Streaming Platforms
Quebec to Boost Presence of Local Content on Netflix, Disney+, and Similar Platforms
The Quebec government has revealed its intention to introduce legislation within the next year aimed at compelling major online streaming services to incorporate more Quebec-produced content into their catalogs. This initiative, among nine others announced on Sunday, falls under the province’s $603 million, five-year strategy to safeguard the French language in Quebec.
While Culture Minister Mathieu Lacombe refrained from divulging specific details about the proposed bill, its focus remains on enhancing the representation of Quebec culture on popular streaming platforms.
“We are working on it,” he told reporters at a press conference in Montreal. “The goal is to make sure that when you’re connecting on platforms on the internet, like Netflix, like Disney, the goal is for the users here in Quebec to have access more easily to Quebec’s content, which is not the case right now.”
The new funding will target nine key priorities identified by the government to enhance the prominence of the French language. A significant portion of this funding, totaling $320 million, will be allocated to initiatives aimed at ensuring temporary international workers are proficient in and actively learning French. Following immigration, culture will receive the second-largest allocation, amounting to $187.3 million.
Both the Ministry of Culture and Communications and the Ministry of International Relations and Francophonie will be entrusted with expanding the availability and accessibility of Quebec’s francophone culture across digital platforms. As outlined in the action plan revealed on Sunday, these ministries will take the lead in fostering international partnerships to ensure a diverse range of francophone cultural content on digital platforms.
While the specifics of how Quebec plans to compel streaming giants to increase the presence of locally produced content remain unclear, the action plan hints at the development of international collaborations, emphasizing the government’s determination to leverage all available means to elevate the profile of Quebec’s francophone culture.
