Film & TV
Netflix Suspends Its Services In Russia
Netflix has officially suspended its services in Russia amid the country’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine.
Confirming the news with Variety, a spokesperson said, “Given the circumstances on the ground, we have decided to suspend our service in Russia.”
The news comes just days after the streaming giant announced its decision to halt all future projects and acquisitions in Russia, including four original films and series which were in the works.
Netflix had also recently refused to abide by a new Russian law that requires it to host 20 government-backed channels including NTV and Channel One.
The suspension means that current subscribers in the country (of which there are approximately one million) will lose access to the platform in the coming days and weeks. New subscribers will also be unable to join the service.
Video sharing platform TikTok has also announced that it will limit its application in Russia, removing users’ ability to live stream and temporarily preventing the creation of new video content.
In a statement, the company said the changes would remain in place while it reviewed “the safety implications” of Russia’s new ‘fake news’ law. The new law threatens to punish people with up to 15 years in prison for spreading “false information”, which many Western outlets interpret as divination from the government’s narrative.
2/ In light of Russia's new ‘fake news’ law, we have no choice but to suspend livestreaming and new content to our video service while we review the safety implications of this law. Our in-app messaging service will not be affected.
— TikTokComms (@TikTokComms) March 6, 2022
Netflix and TikTok join an ever-growing list of major companies who are pulling out or otherwise suspending their services in the country. Other big names include H&M, Apple, IKEA, Microsoft, Puma, Visa, Mastercard, PayPal, Dell, Samsung, Disney, Sony Pictures and Warner Media.
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