Google: Why Is the Tech Giant Leaving Russia?

Google's Russian branch has declared bankruptcy after authorities in the nation confiscated the company's bank account, rendering it unable to pay employees.

The firm claimed it was unable to pay certain financial obligations because authorities had seized the account of its Moscow subsidiary. After Vladimir Putin sent soldiers into Ukraine, Google largely backed out of Russia, stopping advertising sales and software upgrades and no longer enabling Russians to buy applications in its Play Store or paid-for features on YouTube.

Google Russia to File for Bankruptcy

Google's search engine, Google Maps, and YouTube are still available in Russia, and Russian authorities declared earlier this week that they had no plans to ban Google services.

"We already stated that we suspended the vast bulk of our commercial operations in Russia," a Google spokesman said. The confiscation of Google Russia's bank account by Russian authorities has rendered our Russia office unable to operate, including hiring and paying Russian workers, paying suppliers and vendors, and meeting other financial commitments.

Russia did not disclose why Google's bank account was taken, but the corporation has been punished several times in the nation for banning Kremlin-backed YouTube accounts or failing to delete content in violation of the country's disinformation rules, Telegraph reported.

Following Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the majority of Google's employees in Russia have already fled the country and will continue to work from other locations. According to the Wall Street Journal, many will work from Google's huge facility in Dubai.

In March, a Russian court blocked Google's bank account, prompting the corporation to start making plans for an official - and ultimate - exit. The monies were moved out of the bank account by a court bailiff, preventing Google from paying its employees and suppliers. It's unknown how much money was taken.

According to a regulatory filing, Google's Russian business will eventually declare bankruptcy because it is unable to make payments. Following similar statements from Twitter and Snap, Google stopped selling advertisements in Russia on Search, YouTube, and third-party websites in March. Western corporations have been unable to do business in Russia due to US restrictions.

Even as its corporate activities wind down, Google says it will continue to provide free services to Russian internet users, including YouTube, Search, Maps, and Gmail. The Russian government has put a lot of pressure on YouTube, requesting that specific content be removed from the platform. YouTube, which is popular in Russia, has yet to be entirely blocked.

Russia's invasion of Ukraine has turned the country into a pariah in the West, with the US and EU imposing harsh penalties on oligarchs, lawmakers, and authorities. The conflict has impacted Western corporations, such as Meta and Apple, which have decided to cease selling their products and services in Russia.

Google has been penalized 11 million rubles ($170,000) so far for allegedly distributing false material on YouTube, according to Tech Radar via MSN.

Russia's Media Censorship

Russia has long employed censorship and propaganda to influence public opinion, but US-based social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube have functioned with relative freedom for years, allowing Russians to openly discuss their political views. Russia approved a rule in 2021 mandating IT businesses to maintain personnel in the nation, and a move largely viewed as a means of increasing their control over them.

Russia had already begun to exercise this ability before the invasion of Ukraine, sending operatives to the home of a Google executive in Russia as part of the government's efforts to remove an app developed by opposition leader Alexei Navalny from Google's app store. Google took the app down.

Russia penalized Google over $100 million in December for failing to remove information that the authorities deemed unlawful. The corporation has previously received lesser fines, but the current amount determined based on Google's sales was a major increase.

Following Russia's invasion of Ukraine, tensions have reached a new level. In the weeks following the February 24 invasion, Google, Twitter, and Facebook curtailed the Kremlin's worldwide propaganda networks on their platforms in response to heavy pressure from Ukraine and Western governments. Hundreds of channels and movies were banned from YouTube after they were found to have violated the company's policies on coordinated misleading tactics, as per IOL.