The flag of Russia.
Asian Tech Press (Nov 24) -- Russia's mass media watchdog required a list of 13 major foreign Internet companies, including Alphabet Inc's Google and Apple Inc., to open offices in the country by the end of 2021.
The list, which was published on Monday, includes 13 major foreign Internet companies owning 22 information resources:
Google LLC (Google Play, YouTube, YouTube Music, Google Chat, Gmail);Apple Distribution International Ltd. (iCloud, App Store, Apple Music);Meta Platforms, Inc. (Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp);Twitter, Inc.;TikTok Pte. Ltd.;Telegram Messenger, Inc.;Zoom Video Communications, Inc.;Likeme Pte.ltd.;Viber Media S.à r.l.;Discord, Inc.;Pinterest, Inc.;Spotify AB;Twitch Interactive, Inc.According to the Federal Service for Supervision of Communications, Information Technology and Mass Media (Roskomnadzor), in addition to open offices in Russia as of January 1 next year, the companies on the list will have to publish on their websites electronic forms for feedback and complaints from Russian citizens and organizations, and register an account on the agency's official website in order to collaborate with the Russian authorities.
On July 1 of this year, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a federal law that requires foreign Internet companies with an average daily traffic of more than 500,000 visitors with the country to establish branches, representative offices or local legal entities in Russia and to ensure that they operate in accordance with the relevant Russian legislation.
The law also requires hosting providers, advertising operators and other online information publishers to comply with this regulation. And the foreign Internet companies mentioned above are required to register accounts on the official websites of the Russian authorities to maintain communication.
In addition, these companies are obliged to restrict access to content that violates Russian laws. And those foreign Internet companies that violate the laws may be punished by restricting their operations or even shutting them down.
