Roskomnadzor, the agency that regulates and oversees public policy in Russia, asked Netflix to offer state TV channels to subscribers in their country.
In the Roskomnadzor list created at the end of 2020, this rule applies to online streaming services with more than 100 thousand daily users. They are required to comply with Russian law and register their company in Russia.
Quoted from The Moscow Times, Monday (3/1/2022) registered services must also provide 20 Russian federal TV channels. From March 2022, Netflix will be required to offer broadcasts from Russia's state-owned Channel One, entertainment-focused NTV, and the Russian Orthodox Church's internal channel Spa.
The laws Netflix must now comply with include a controversial provision that prohibits promoting "extremism". These restrictions were also used against supporters of the anti-Kremlin opposition.
Russia has in recent months tightened restrictions on the operations of foreign internet giants within its borders. Previously, Google and Apple were both forced to remove content related to jailed Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny and his colleagues ahead of Russia's parliamentary elections, after authorities threatened to sue the tech giant's local employees.
Last week, Russia slapped Google and Meta with a record fine of $125 million for failing to remove content that had been flagged illegal by Russian censors.
