OTTAWA Google will remove links to Canadian news from search results and other products in Canada when a law requiring internet giants to pay news publishers comes into effect, the Alphabet-owned company said on Thursday.

Google joins Facebook-owner Meta Platforms Inc in announcing an end to news access for Canadian users of their platforms after Bill C-18, or the Online News Act, was passed into law last week.

The legislation came after complaints from Canada's media industry, which wants tighter regulation of tech companies to prevent them from elbowing news businesses out of the online advertising market.

"We have now informed the government that when the law takes effect, we unfortunately will have to remove links to Canadian news from our Search, News and Discover products in Canada," Google said in a blogpost.

"We don't take this decision or its impacts lightly and believe it's important to be transparent with Canadian publishers and our users as early as possible," it said.

(Reporting by Ismail Shakil in Ottawa; Editing by Steve Scherer)