Nov 3 – Russia has levied a staggering fine on Google, reportedly amounting to $20 decillion—larger than the entire world’s gross domestic product—due to the tech giant’s restriction of Russian propaganda channels on YouTube.
According to the Russian business newspaper RBC, the fine stems from legal claims brought by 17 Russian TV channels, resulting in compounded penalties imposed by Russian courts.
For context, the International Monetary Fund estimates the global GDP at approximately $110 trillion, while Google’s parent company, Alphabet, has a market valuation of around $2 trillion.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov remarked that he “can’t even pronounce this figure right,” but emphasized that the fine holds significant symbolic weight. “Google should not restrict the activities of our broadcasters, and Google is doing this,” Peskov stated.
Additionally, Russian state news outlet Tass reported that a court had previously mandated Google to reinstate the blocked YouTube channels or face escalating fines, which double each week.
The situation comes in the wake of a mass YouTube outage in August, with the platform remaining one of the few accessible sources of independent information in Russia, where state authorities have severely limited press freedom and blocked many independent news sites.
-VOA.
Source: capitalfm
