The National Post reports in its Saturday, Nov. 15, edition that global streaming giants Spotify and Apple are urging the Quebec government to rethink a plan to impose French-language quotas and other requirements, echoing arguments Netflix and Alphabet's Youtube made last week. A Postmedia dispatch to the Post reports that Spotify said in a brief last week, "Imposing rigid quotas or obligations affecting algorithms could harm the user experience and reduce the effectiveness of personalized recommendation systems that are essential to music discovery." A committee of the Quebec legislature is studying a government bill aimed at streamers. It would make apps default to French, set quotas for French video and audio content, require smart TVs to spotlight French programming, and entrench access to French content into the Quebec Charter of Human Rights and Freedoms. Sweden-based Spotify, the biggest music streaming service with 280 million paid subscribers globally, said it invests heavily to highlight French-language music, podcasts and audiobooks. Apple, which operates Apple Music and Apple TV, said it is already a major promoter of francophone culture in Quebec.
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