As the government attempts to very quickly pass laws that force digital streamers to follow Canadian content rules, the Senate has made it clear they’re going to take their sweet time reviewing them. 

Refresher: The Online Streaming Act (aka Bill C-11) has been the target of criticism over claims it limits free speech and places modern services under the same rules as traditional channels (with comparisons to placing a square peg in a round hole).  

• Under the proposed laws, the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) would enforce streaming platforms to use Canadian actors, contribute to Canadian media funds, and promote Canadian content. 

Platforms like YouTube and Spotify warn the laws could hurt Canadian creators if their content isn’t deemed “Canadian” enough by CRTC guidelines. Netflix said titles they solely fund, no matter the number of Canadians on set, will never meet content requirements.

What happened: By this week, the House of Commons came up with over 150 amendments to the law to discuss and debate before a vote, but their time was cut short by a 9 PM deadline that critics feel was unnecessarily imposed. 

• The government imposed the deadline to stop certain MPs from stalling the bill’s progress, but it meant many were forced to vote on amendments without discussion.

Now, the Senate committee on transport and communications will review the bill before it’s turned to the entire Senate, with the committee’s chair assuring that it will not rush its review. 

Why it matters: With support from the Liberals, NDP, and Bloc Quebecois, a version of Bill C-11 is likely to pass some time this year. But even if a bill is a sure thing, government representatives should still ensure it goes through the proper review process. 

Quote: "I do not underestimate the economic difficulties and uncertainty of the months to come. A soft landing is not guaranteed.”

Canadian Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland warned in an address yesterday that there is no guarantee that the central bank’s efforts at curbing inflation won't trigger a recession. 

A ‘soft landing” is when policymakers can slow down economic activity without triggering a recession. The Bank of Canada is aiming for exactly that, but it’s a delicate balance to strike. 

Twitter employees got their first taste of what life might be like once Elon Musk is in charge, as the platform’s prospective new owner joined a staff all-hands meeting yesterday (pictured above). 

In true Musk fashion, he had a lot to say. 

What happened: When he wasn’t busy talking about a scammy product he bought from a YouTube ad and the potential existence of aliens (he hasn’t seen any evidence, btw), Musk laid out his vision and goals for the company, including:  

• One billion daily active users, which would be a quantum leap from Twitter’s current ~229 million users and put it at the top of the social media food chain.

• An app where people can tweet “pretty outrageous” things without the fear of being banned—as long as none of those things break the law.

• Taking stock of Twitter’s workforce, meaning layoffs aren’t ruled out and employees will need to come back to the office (unless they are “exceptional at their job”)—that ruffled quite a few feathers in Twitter’s Slack channels. 

Musk did not reassure employees that the deal was still going through—which is concerning considering some severe signs of buyer’s remorse we’ve seen over the past few weeks. 

Plus: It’s not the best time to be a Musk-owned company. Tesla is reeling after a scathing report on its autopilot systems (causing shares to fall ~9% yesterday).  At SpaceX, employees drafted an open letter calling Musk a “source of distraction and embarrassment”. 

Why it matters: There’s still a huge amount of uncertainty ahead for one of the largest social media companies, from how employees will work, to how the platform would run.

☎️ $7.5 million. The amount Bell was fined for denying permit applications for telephone pole access to Quebec telecom Videotron, which created an unfair competitive advantage that violated the Telecommunications Act. 

🧱 100 billion. Number of bricks that LEGO produces yearly. The world’s largest toymaker is now looking to boost that number with a new US$1 billion brick plant in Virginia, meaning even more dangerous things to step on. 

🚂 72. Hours of notice that Canadian National Railway signal operators gave their employer before starting their strike Saturday morning. If a deal isn’t reached by then, Canada’s largest railway will see service disruptions. 

• Meet the Hamilton teen genius who’s beating the crypto at its own game.
  
  
• Just in case: Seven ways to prep for a recession.
  
  
• Scientists have discovered the origins of the bubonic plague.
  
  
• A map of where interest rates have gone up across the globe.
  
  
• Soon you’ll be able to drive down back roads in luxury: Ferrari is debuting its first SUV model in September.
  
  
• Why Apple killed the headphone jack.
  
  
• How to fix the bug making you rewatch the same Instagram stories.

If you can’t beat ‘em: After getting shunned out of the existing G8, Russia is forming a “new” G8 with China, India, Indonesia, Brazil, Mexico, Iran, and Turkey—the seven major economies that have not imposed sanctions on Russia.

On life support: Canada’s health care system is on the verge of collapse as pressure on the system worsens amidst growing patient backlogs, the president of the Canadian Medical Association told CTV News

Can’t cover that up: Makeup brand Revlon has filed for bankruptcy protection due to supply chain issues for key ingredients and massive debt. Courts have allowed the company to continue operations as it drums up financing.

Show-off: Cloud computing giant Snowflake is bucking the trend of Canadian tech layoffs, announcing a new Toronto HQ that will hire hundreds of engineers to work on the company’s new Unistore workload technology.