Ruwiki, Russian Version Of Wikipedia, Ready To Launch Officially After Successful Trial

Ruwiki, a Russian version of the Wikipedia internet epicenter (photo: @freethewordsnow)

JAKARTA - Ruwiki's full launch, a Russian version of Wikipedia's popular internet epicenter, will take place on Monday, January 15 as reported by Russian media.

Test beta - testing of limited sites to audiences - began in mid-2023, as reported by the daily Kommersant. Reportedly there have been more articles in Ruwiki than Russian-language segments on Wikipedia.

Russia has stated that it has not planned to block Wikipedia - one of the sources of independent information that has remained in Russia since its crackdown on online content following Moscow's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

However, Russian courts have imposed a series of fines on this online equator regarding Ukrainian content since then.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has given approval for a new alternative platform for Wikipedia in May 2022, according to Russian media reports.

Last week, the Izvestia newspaper reported, citing Ruwiki's press service, that the most widely read articles during the beta trial phase included a list of deaths in 2023, escalation of Arab-Israeli conflicts, Russian military operations in Ukraine, and films with the highest revenue in Russia.

The average user spends more than six minutes on the site, and the average review depth reaches more than five pages in the trial phase, Izvestia reported.

Kommersant said that the founders of Ruwiki would not disclose how much this project cost or the names of the site's investors.