YouTube download speeds on computers will be slowed by around 40% this week and 70% by the end of next week, said Alexander Khinshtein, head of the technology committee in Russia’s lower house of parliament. He attributed this to YouTube's policy of "consistently deleting channels of our public figures," whose views do not align with the "Western point of view."
These restrictions will not yet affect access to YouTube on mobile devices, Khinshtein said.
Google’s Russian unit, which is YouTube’s parent company, filed for bankruptcy in 2022 after local authorities seized its bank accounts over a series of local fines. However, the company continued to offer free services in Russia, including Google Search, YouTube, and Gmail.
YouTube has blocked some pro-Kremlin or state-affiliated Russian channels.
Roughly half of Russians use YouTube every month, according to the Mediascope monitoring service, Bloomberg reported.