Russian watchdog wants to fine Google based on Russian sales figures

The Russian communications watchdog wants to fine Google between 5 and 20 percent of the search giant’s turnover in Russia. That writes Reuters. The fine would come because Google would not remove illegal content and would not have paid other fines.

The fine mentioned by the Russian communications watchdog Roskomnadzor was mentioned during e-mail between Reuters journalists and spokespersons for Roskomnadzor. It states that Roskomnadzor will impose a fine on Facebook that will be calculated on the turnover figures of the Russian branch of the social media company. “A similar case will be brought against Google in October,” it said.

Reuters writes that the Russian communications watchdog will issue this fine because Google in Russia does not remove content that is marked as illegal in the country from its platforms, such as YouTube. According to the Russian watchdog, Google has also not yet paid the fines it has imposed on the company this year and there is still an amount outstanding of approximately 393,000 euros.

If the Russian watchdog issues a fine of between 5 and 20 percent of Google’s turnover in Russia, this amount will fluctuate between about 52 million and 206 million euros, according to Reuters.