Russia has fined Google $20 decillion USD which is actually more money than there is in the whole world.
👉 Background: Back in March 2022, Google stopped serving ads to users in Russia that it believed was exploiting or condoning Russia’s war in Ukraine, and blocked more than 1,000 YouTube channels and over 5.5 million videos.
👉 What happened: Now, Russia has fined Google $20 decillion USD which is actually more money than there is in the whole world. In fact, according to the International Monetary Fund, there is $110 trillion USD in the world.
👉 What else: It’s pretty obvious that Google couldn’t even pay this fine if they tried. But Russia is hoping that this fine so-big-you-can’t-even-pronounce will push Google to lift restrictions on the channels.
💡Global tech giants and national governments can often find themselves in a complex power struggle.
💡On the one hand, countries recognise that Big Tech drives innovation, provides jobs, and contributes to their economies — sometimes they even pay tax. But many governments are also looking for greater control over the Big Tech companies.
💡This ain’t the first time we’ve seen battles between Big Tech and governments around the world.
It’s pretty clear that Google has been wary of operating in Russia for a few years especially after making around $1.3 billion USD from Russia in 2021, which fell to $245 million USD in 2022.
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