The unexpected casualty of Quebec’s new language laws: OtterBoxes.
What happened: The US-based phone case company, popular with both teenagers and construction workers thanks to its indestructible form, has temporarily blocked direct-to-consumer shipments to Quebec as it works to comply with French language laws.
- Bill 96, which came into effect in June, opened the door for consumers to take legal action against companies that don’t offer French options across all their touchpoints.
The bill amended the Charter of the French Language to make it crystal clear that the one and only official language in the province is French, and it affects aspects of life in the province far beyond business, including health care, education, and immigration.
Why it matters: While this is great news for traducteurs (translators), complying with the laws won’t be possible or worth it for some companies. Other businesses–including national companies already offering bilingual support–might start taking their place.
- Smaller companies will struggle the most to meet the new requirements and could ultimately decide to pull out of the province entirely to avoid legal action.
Zoom out: While Quebec-based companies are relatively unaffected (which is kind of the point), those from outside the province, including OtterBox and other US companies, will now need, at minimum, a French website and customer service agent to enter the market.