The Quebec government presents Bill 109 on the discoverability of French-speaking cultural content as a historic turning point to protect our cultural sovereignty in the digital age. The intention is noble, urgent, even: we must in fact ensure the discoverability of French-speaking cultural content on the global platforms which now shape access to culture. However, behind this ambition, the text rests on fragile legal foundations and has several blind spots which risk compromising its real effectiveness.
First, the bill intervenes in a field of largely federal jurisdiction: broadcasting and telecommunications. By attempting to impose obligations on international platforms like YouTube, Netflix or Spotify, Quebec is venturing into territory where the courts have traditionally recognized the preponderance of Ottawa. The risk of unconstitutionality is high, and it would be regrettable if a law adopted to defend our culture was ultimately invalidated for lack of legal basis.
Then, Quebec’s capacity to enforce these obligations remains limited. The digital giants operate on a global scale, with centralized algorithms that are impossible to modulate for a single territory representing less than 1% of their global market. The recent experience of news blocking by Meta should remind us that a legislative framework that is too coercive can produce the opposite effect to that sought: here a reduction in access, rather than an increase in visibility.
Another blind spot lies in the very notion of “discoverability”, a concept that is still vague and difficult to define and measure objectively. How to determine if content has been “sufficiently” highlighted? With what criteria? On which interfaces? Without clear technical guidelines, enforcement of the law will be both complex for the platforms and arduous for the State.
Let’s be clear: asserting our cultural sovereignty in the digital environment is essential. But to be effective, this sovereignty must be based on realistic, legally solid and technically applicable mechanisms. A true digital cultural strategy cannot be based solely on obligations imposed unilaterally on global players who have no dependence on the Quebec market.
Quebec is right to defend its culture. But it must do so armed with tools that stand up to courts, technological realities and international power struggles. Otherwise, Bill 109 risks remaining a declaration of intent rather than an instrument of transformation.
