Russian Bloggers May Face Fines for Advertising on Banned Social Networks

Violators may face fines of up to 500,000 rubles

Russia will introduce fines for advertising on banned social networks. This was reported by Izvestia, citing the State Duma Committee on Security.

The bill, which prohibits advertising on *Instagram, **Facebook (owned by ***Meta, recognized as extremist in the Russian Federation) and X (formerly Twitter), is scheduled to be adopted on March 25. Violators face fines: up to 2.5 thousand rubles for citizens, up to 20 thousand for officials, and up to 500 thousand for organizations.

The initiators of the law believe that advertising on blocked platforms supports companies that pursue a "hostile policy."

Experts predict that the ban will hit the incomes of bloggers and influencers. Many will have to switch to Russian platforms — VK, Zen, or Rutube.

The Association of Bloggers and Agencies (ABA) has secured the introduction of a transition period: the law will come into force six months after its signing. The organization fears that market participants will not have time to adapt.

The new rules will affect all resources that are restricted in the Russian Federation. According to legislators, this will deprive the banned platforms of income and reduce their influence.

*Instagram is a social network banned in Russia.

**Facebook is a social network banned in Russia.

***Meta is recognized as an extremist organization, its activities are prohibited in Russia

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