Russia Fines Google, Discord For ‘Banned Content’

Tom Jowitt,
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Russian internet © Pavel Ignatov Shutterstock 2012

Russia again fines Google, as well as Discord, for not deleting content that Moscow deems banned or illegal

Russia has issued a fine against Alphabet’s Google, as well the instant messaging platform Discord, over content the Putin regime deems illegal.

Reuters, citing the Moscow courts’ press service, reported on the fines, as Russia’s communications regulator ordered Discord to remove 947 posts it alleges contain child sexual abuse material, drug-related content, and calls for extremism.

Moscow’s Tagansky district court reportedly fined both Google and Discord 3.5 million roubles ($37,674.92) each. Google was reportedly fined for not removing content Russia deems illegal, while Discord was penalised for failing to restrict access to banned information.

St. Basil's Cathedral on Red square, Moscow, Russia

Russia bans

Tech platforms already banned in Russia include Facebook, X (formerly Twitter) and Instagram.

Russia is also said to be considering a ban on Discord.

Meta’s WhatsApp had been Russia’s most popular messaging platform, but it was blocked in Russia in March 2023, alongside Snapchat, Discord, Skype for Business, and Microsoft Teams

However the Putin regime had until July 2024 allowed YouTube to continue functioning in part because of the lack of a clear domestic alternative.

But later that month Russia reduced the speed of YouTube by 70 percent, following multiple fines over alleged failure to remove so called “banned content” and “fake news” about Russia’s illegal invasion of Ukraine.

Google’s YouTube was finally blocked in Russia in early August, cutting off an information source for average Russians free of the propaganda controls of the Putin regime.

Pointless fine?

But the fine against Google seems to be especially pointless, considering that the firm no longer operates in Russia and its some of its major services are already banned there.

Google’s Russian subsidiary was declared bankrupt in October 2023 after Moscow had seized its local bank account, and transferred the funds out of the account, leaving it with no funds to pay contractors or staff.

Google had already moved most of its employees out of the country and closed down its local office, and also stopped selling online advertising in Russia in March 2022.