Back in 2020, Google-owned YouTube banned the Russian channel Tsargrad in response to US sanctions leading to a legal battle between Russia and the company. This battle has now become more intense as over 17 Russian media stations are suing Google for blocking their content, especially after the war between Russia and Ukraine.
In a recent hearing, a Russian court fined Google for an insane amount of $2.5 decillion because the company failed to comply with the requirement to restore Russian media accounts on YouTube. The company is held accountable under Article 13.41 of the Administrative Offenses Code. As per a Russian report, if the court decision is not implemented within 9 months from the date of its entry into force, a fine of 100 thousand rubles will be charged for each day of non-compliance. This means the amount doubles every week until the decision is implemented with no limit on the total amount of fine.
This $2.5 decillion amount is a huge amount for Google as it even exceeds the world’s total DP which is estimated to be around $100 trillion. It is said that Russian media has also appealed to courts in Turkey, Hungary, Spain, South Africa, and other countries to recognize and enforce court decisions made against Google in Russia.
On the other hand, Google has also filed lawsuits in US and UK courts against the owners of Russian TV channels RT, Tsargrad, and Spas and it is said that the company is also trying to obtain a ruling that would prohibit the channels from initiating legal proceedings outside of Russia. Similar lawsuits are also filed in England and Wales.
Alphabet which is the parent company of Google said in its Q2, 2024 report, “Google has ongoing legal matters related to Russia.” “For example, some of the disputes involve account closures, including for sanctioned individuals. The company has also been assessed progressive fines in connection with account suspension disputes, including for sanctioned individuals. We do not believe these legal matters will have a material adverse effect on Google’s business.”
Google is yet to respond on this latest court ruling but the company is expected to soon take its next steps to avoid this insane fine.
