In the midst of the crisis in Eastern Europe, a New York Times report indicates that the Russia is stepping up a censorship campaign by lobbying tech giants, such as Apple, Google, Spotify, Twitter and others, to comply with a new law.
Russia requires Apple and other companies to comply with a specific law
The NYT says Russian authorities have warned Apple and other tech companies to comply with a law requiring them to set up legal entities in the country. Legal experts and civil society groups stated at the publication that this “so-called landing law makes companies and their employees more vulnerable to the Russian legal system and the demands of government censorship“.
The moves are part of a Russian pressure campaign against foreign tech companies. Using the prospect of fines, arrests and blocking or slowing down Internet services, authorities are pushing companies to censor unfavorable material online while keeping pro-Kremlin media unfiltered.
Apparently, the apple has already complied with this new law by opening an office in Moscow earlier this month, as reported by RepublicWorld:
Apple opened a representative office in Russia, adhering to Kremlin communications regulator Roskomnadzor rules that required foreign companies to start operations on Russian soil in order to promote the country’s domestic tech sector over Silicon Valley. Roskomnadzor had previously warned that technology companies that violate the legislation risk facing advertising bans, data collection and money transfer restrictions, or will be completely blacklisted. Russia had asked dozens of IT and technology companies to locate their operations citing the new law.
In addition to Apple, TikTok and Spotify they have complied with the law, while Google has done so shortly. Twitter and Meta have respected some parts of it, while Twitch and Telegram no.
This NYT report highlights a very controversial time for Apple as the company advocates for privacy. Not only that, the Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister has called on the company to stop sales of products in Russia. In a letter to CEO Tim Cook this Friday, Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Mykhailo Fedorov wrote that Apple should “stop providing Apple products and services to the Russian Federation.” The request comes as Russia continues its invasion of Ukraine.
While the Cupertino OEM looks away (but not too far) at this conflict, surprisingly, Facebook’s parent company Meta has just blocked Russian state media from running ads around the world.
