A Kremlin attempt to slow down Twitter caused government websites to crash and raised new questions about its ambitious plans to regulate the internet. Wednesday last week was supposed to be a big day for Andrei Lipov, a 51-year-old Russian top official trusted with the Kremlin’s most sensitive internet initiatives. A not very successful internet …
Russia’s pursuit of Internet sovereignty backfires, again Read More
The Russian Internet and telecom regulator Rokomnadzor announced today first steps to disrupt Twitter’s speed within the country for failing to remove banned content. These measures are said to affect “100% of cellphones and 50% of personal computers” in the country. “Starting March 10, 2021, centralized response measures have been taken against Twitter to protect Russian citizens and force the [social …
Russia restrains Twitter’s speed and sues other social media over illegal content Read More
After Russian social network aficionados, including millions of teenagers, transformed TikTok into a digital rebellion hotspot, the Russian Foreign Affairs ministry opened an account on the Chinese platform late last week. The first videos displayed in the ministry’s account are meant to mock opposition figure Alexey Navalny, refuting his last year’s claims that the Russian anti-covid …
Since the COVID-19 shockwave hit Russia in March 2020, East-West Digital News has been following closely the impact of the pandemic on the country’s tech industries. These articles highlight the best of Russian innovators’ response to the virus, the high-tech approach of the authorities to manage the crisis, online retailers’ reaction to demand surge, and …
Russian tech amid the pandemic: Impact and response Read More
Russia will fine seven social media companies for not removing pro-Navalny videos ahead of last Saturday’s nationwide protests, the country’s communications regulator said Wednesday. “Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, TikTok, VKontakte, Odnoklassniki and YouTube will be fined for non-compliance with requirements to prevent the dissemination of calls to minors to participate in unauthorized rallies,” Roskomnadzor said in …
Russia to fine social media giants for keeping up pro-Navalny videos Read More
Just days after Alexey Navalny’s arrest in the Moscow airport and the publication of his killer video on “Putin’s palace,” a digital rebellion is underway in Russia, involving millions of teenagers and elder users of social media. As of Jan. 21, the investigative video on the luxury mansion had broken all records, garnering more than 50 million …
Following amendments to the Russian tax code which were adopted in July 2020, Russian software developers may, starting from Jan. 1, benefit from significant tax cuts. The new tax regime provides: Reduced rates on the taxes on profit: from 20% to 3% for federal taxes and to 0% for regional taxes; A reduced rate on social security …
On December 25, the Federation Council, Russia’s upper house of parliament, approved a bill against “censorship” of Russian media and other illegitimate restrictions to content distribution on the Internet. The new law targets Internet resources, including foreign ones, that restrict “distribution of socially significant information in the territory of the Russian Federation on the grounds of nationality, language, origin, property and …
After holding top positions across the Russian energy industry for more than a decade, Oleg Dubnov has been heading Skolkovo’s energy cluster since 2017. He shared with East-West Digital News fresh insights about the emergence of green technologies in Russia, the related industrial challenges and the international potential of Russian startups in this field. So …
This material is a shortened version of an article which appeared in The Moscow Times Whether you live in Moscow, Berlin, New York, Tokyo, Delhi or Buenos Aires, chances are you still think TikTok is some kind of marginal Chinese social network where teenagers from all over the world dance and sing. Not anymore, it …
Pro-Kremlin trolls invade TikTok as Chinese network gains massive popularity in Russia Read More
While identifying FSB agents reportedly involved in Alexey Navalny’s Novichok poisoning, international investigation group Bellingcat revealed today how deep and worrying are the implications of Russia’s data black market. Bellingcat’s work on the Navalny case originated from a previous investigation into Russian chemical weapons projects. Call metadata were analyzed for the telephone numbers used by two executives of SC Signal, an entity “involved in the development of new variants …
Launched almost a year ago, a Moscow city experiment to use artificial intelligence and computer vision technologies in the local healthcare system has involved more than 20 solution providers offering 38 services. The city authorities intend to involve even more providers, medical organisations and doctors, and develop new AI use cases. The city also aims …
Moscow government experiments AI in local healthcare system Read More
