Google halts all advertising in Russia

By Brian Fung, CNN Business

Google has suspended all advertising in Russia, the company confirmed to CNN Friday.

“In light of the extraordinary circumstances, we’re pausing Google ads in Russia,” the company said in a statement. “The situation is evolving quickly, and we will continue to share updates when appropriate.”

The decision covers all Google’s ad surfaces in Russia including Google display advertising, YouTube and search, the company said. Google’s decision was first reported late Thursday by Reuters.

Google’s move comes as Russia appears poised for a crackdown on major tech platforms. The country’s communications regulator has sent multiple letters to Google and YouTube, along with other western tech companies, complaining of restrictions targeting Russian state media. A recently passed Russian law also requires foreign tech platforms to open local offices in the country in order to continue doing business there — a step that policy analysts have said is an effort to bring tech companies further under Russian legal jurisdiction.

Twitter announced a similar decision last week to suspend advertising in both Russia and Ukraine. It is unclear whether Meta, Facebook’s parent, also intends to suspend advertising in Russia. The company didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.

Google and Meta had both already taken steps to prevent Russian state media from running ads on their respective platforms.

The-CNN-Wire
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