Facebook has paid 17 million roubles ($229,643) in fines owed in Russia for failing to delete content Moscow deems illegal, the Interfax news agency reported on Sunday, but with the threat of a potentially larger fine looming, Reuters reported.
Facebook parent Meta, along with Alphabet’s Google (GOOGL.O), faces a court case next week for suspected repeated violations of Russian legislation on content and could be fined a percentage of its annual revenue in Russia. read more.
Facebook did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Sunday.
Moscow has increased pressure on large tech firms this year in a campaign that critics characterise as an attempt by the Russian authorities to exert tighter control over the internet, something they say threatens to stifle individual and corporate freedom.