Russian Parliament Passes New Bill, Law On Social Media Companies Not Opening Local Offices

JAKARTA - Russian lawmakers on Tuesday, July 5, approved a bill that provides stricter penalties for foreign internet companies that fail to open offices in Russia. This penalty includes a number of fines.

Moscow has long sought to exert greater control over technology companies, and disputes over content and data have escalated since they sent armed forces to Ukraine on February 24.

Foreign social media giants with more than 500,000 daily users have been obliged since July 1, 2021, to open their offices in Russia or risk penalties ranging from fines to outright bans from operating.

Now, the punitive fines that Russia has imposed on Google and Meta Platforms like Alphabet for hosting prohibited content could be applied to companies that fail to open offices. Russia's lower house of parliament has now passed the bill.

Fines can reach 10% of the company's turnover in Russia from the previous year, up to 20% for repeated violations.

Russia's communications regulator, Roskomnadzor, last November registered 13 US companies, most of which should set up offices on Russian soil by the end of this year.

Only Apple, Spotify, messaging app Rakuten Group, Viber and photo-sharing app Likeme are fully compliant with the rules. However Spotify closed its Russia office in March in response to Russia's actions in Ukraine and subsequently suspended its streaming service in that country.

Meta, who was found guilty by a Russian court on charges of "extremist activity" in March, is no longer registered in Russia, and its Facebook and Instagram platforms are banned, although its messaging app WhatsApp is not banned and is still operating.

According to the government's website, four other companies have met at least one other Roskomnadzor requirement but have not set up Russian legal entities or offices. They are Google, Twitter, TikTok ByteDance and Zoom Video Communications.

According to the website, Discord, Twitch, Telegram, bookmarking service Pinterest and Wikipedia owner, Wikimedia Foundation are not taking steps to comply with the rules.