Russian Telecom Operators Work to Improve YouTube Access Independently

According to Kommersant, in the absence of an official statement from Roskomnadzor, Russian telecom operators have started implementing solutions on their networks to make YouTube accessible to subscribers. There have been dozens of such cases reported across the country. Since YouTube is not included in the list of banned sites and is not officially blocked in Russia, legal experts believe these actions are lawful.

A source from one of the telecom companies told the publication that providers are deploying solutions to bypass YouTube slowdowns, and this information was confirmed by two other sources in the telecom industry. Journalists report that companies are taking these steps due to the lack of an official announcement from regulators about the reasons for YouTube’s slow performance in Russia.

Earlier, the “Rosteleset” association (which includes over 200 regional telecom operators) sent a letter to Maksut Shadayev, Minister of Digital Development, and Andrey Lipov, head of Roskomnadzor. The letter stated that subscribers of more than 135 regional operators began terminating contracts due to issues with YouTube and other Google services. The operators appealed to the Ministry of Digital Development and Roskomnadzor for an official explanation regarding YouTube’s status. Apparently, no response was received.

One of Kommersant’s sources said that the implementation of solutions to bypass YouTube restrictions has now reached dozens of cases nationwide. Journalists found at least two announcements from fixed-line internet providers in the Northwestern Federal District stating that YouTube works on their networks without “additional tools” for users. One message noted that user traffic is being redirected from Russian Google servers to European ones.

Major operators like VimpelCom, MegaFon, MTS, and Rostelecom declined to comment.

“Some operators are looking to attract new subscribers ahead of the busy season by using bypass tools. They believe the risk of liability is low since there is no official ban on YouTube, and they interpret this in their favor,” said Dmitry Petrov, CEO of Comfortel.

Oleg Grishchenko, president of the “Rosteleset” association, told Kommersant that they “do not see any violation of the law,” since there are no official restrictions on YouTube. Representatives of an unnamed telecom operator agreed that, under current circumstances, using bypass tools does not entail liability for operators, as YouTube is not officially banned.

“Formally, operators are not liable for poor traffic filtering through TSPU equipment, as this is managed by Roskomnadzor. However, traffic manipulation by operators could pose risks under the Administrative Code regarding the organization of TSPU operations, up to license revocation,” explained Ekaterina Abashina, an attorney from the First Digital Bar Association of Moscow. She noted that operators are responsible for failing to block sites listed in Roskomnadzor’s official registry of banned websites.

Problems with YouTube in Russia have been observed since late July 2024. In August 2024, the service experienced widespread outages in Russia, and many users were unable to access YouTube at all. A more detailed timeline of events is provided below.

These issues are clearly reflected in Google’s official statistics. Additionally, there has been a noticeable increase in traffic routed through MSK-IX.

Timeline of Events

• Spring 2022: Google notified Russian providers about the shutdown of Google Global Cache (GGC) servers, which help speed up company services, including YouTube. At the start of 2022, there were about 700 GGC servers in Russian operators’ networks, expected to decrease to around 450 by the end of 2023.
• Late 2023: Konstantin Kolesov, Head of Strategic Data Transmission Development at PJSC VimpelCom (Beeline), announced at the MSK-IX Peering Forum that Google offered Russian operators a direct connection in Moscow or St. Petersburg to maintain quality access to its services, instead of relying on outdated and overloaded cache servers.
• July 12, 2024: Rostelecom representatives warned of possible technical issues with YouTube video loading speeds due to problems with Google Global Cache equipment. The company stated that these issues could affect video loading speed and playback quality for subscribers of all Russian operators.
• On the same day, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov commented that Russian authorities did not plan to restrict YouTube access and that the service’s issues were due to equipment problems. “We know from official statements by our companies that the issue is with equipment that hasn’t been updated for over two years. There can be no other explanation,” Peskov said.
• Also on July 12, Gazeta.ru reported, citing sources close to the presidential administration and law enforcement, that Russian authorities planned to fully block YouTube in September 2024.
• July 24, 2024: Rostelecom reported a decline in YouTube video loading quality, especially in high-definition formats, and noted an increase in user complaints. The company again blamed Google for not expanding or updating its equipment in Russia since 2022, leading to equipment wear and insufficient capacity to handle increased internet traffic.
• July 25, 2024: Alexander Khinshtein, head of the State Duma Committee on Information Policy, stated on Telegram that the “degradation” of YouTube was a forced measure aimed not at Russian users, but at the foreign platform’s administration, which he accused of ignoring Russian law. He said YouTube loading speeds on desktops could drop by 40% by the end of the week and by 70% by the end of July.
• July 26, 2024: Roskomnadzor commented that measures against YouTube were due to “disrespect for the country.” The agency added that it had sufficient tools to motivate the company in such situations, citing numerous violations of Russian law and disrespect for the country and its citizens as grounds for action.
• August 1, 2024: Widespread issues with YouTube began in Russia. Google representatives stated that the slowdown was not due to any technical problems or actions by the company. IT specialists again explained that video loading issues could be caused by traffic slowdowns related to TSPU (technical means of countering threats) equipment.
• August 8, 2024: YouTube became almost completely inaccessible on many Russian operators’ networks. According to Vadim Yavorsky, CTO of Piter-IX, Google traffic at Piter-IX connections halved on August 1 and dropped by half again on August 8. Media also reported that Roskomnadzor requested data from operators on the IP and physical locations of Google Global Cache servers.
• August 12, 2024: More than 135 regional telecom operators appealed to the Ministry of Digital Development and Roskomnadzor for a public explanation regarding YouTube slowdowns. The “Rosteleset” association confirmed the letter was sent and received.