Canada is to enhance its scrutiny of foreign investments in video games and other interactive media, seeking to block outside actors from manipulating public opinion in the country.
“Hostile state-sponsored or state-influenced actors may try to leverage foreign investments in the interactive digital media sector to spread disinformation and manipulate information,” Canadian Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry Francois-Philippe Champagne said on Friday in a joint announcement with Canadian Minister of Heritage Pascale St-Onge.
Starting immediately, Ottawa is to increase scrutiny of investments “by entities owned or influenced by foreign states, particularly states that engage in activities that may pose a risk to Canada’s national security,” they said in the statement.
Photo: Reuters
Citing the Investment Canada Act, which gives the government the authority to review all foreign investments, the tougher stance applies to deals in interactive digital media, which might apply to video games, immersive technology like augmented and virtual reality, and other digital content with multiple active users, according to the statement published online.
National security factors might include the size of a product’s audience, whether it includes in-game chat logs, purchases and microphone or camera access, and prospective investors’ ties to foreign governments, the government said in the statements.
The government said it is also aiming to protect Canadian intellectual property.
Although the statement did not identify any particular nation, Canada has repeatedly accused China and Russia of foreign interference. Both countries deny the charges.
Canada has previously ordered Chinese investors to divest from lithium exploration companies and it also banned Chinese technology giant Huawei Technologies Co (華為) from its 5G wireless networks.
Additional reporting by Reuters
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