By Paul Vieira


OTTAWA--Canada's Liberal government ordered the country's broadcast regulator to take a second look at its recently released online-streaming decision that sparked the likelihood of fresh trade retaliation from the U.S.

Canada's Culture Minister Marc Miller said the order from the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission "would impose new costs on companies providing these services, which could ultimately fall on Canadian consumers through higher prices. At a time when Canadians face cost-of-living pressure, now is not the time to make culture and entertainment more expensive."

The decision, issued May 21, ordered a sharp increase in the level of financial payments that U.S. online streaming operators had to contribute toward Canadian programming. At the same time, the regulator eased the financial burden for domestic, over-the-air broadcasters.

The decision angered some of the biggest U.S. streaming companies like Netflix, Walt Disney, Apple, Amazon.com and Paramount Skydance, prompting a harsh rebuke from Hollywood. The Motion Picture Association said the move would impose "discriminatory investment obligations" on its members, arguing it violated Canada's trade obligations.

The U.S. Ambassador to Canada, Pete Hoekstra, said it represented fresh trade barriers that marked a deterioration in the investment climate for U.S. companies.

Miller's decision was contained in a statement about new funding for Canadian artists. His request that the regulator review its work comes a day after senior Canadian officials traveled to Washington to try to revive trade talks with the Trump administration, which had largely stalled.


Write to Paul Vieira at paul.vieira@wsj.com


(END) Dow Jones Newswires

06-03-26 1044ET