YouTube Controversy in Russia: Slowdowns or Censorship?

President Vladimir Putin is investigating YouTube speed issues in Russia after a top cinema official's complaint. Critics say authorities slow the service to prevent access to critical content. Russia blames Google. YouTube denies the problem is on its end, highlighting its importance for opposition voices.

President Vladimir Putin is examining ongoing YouTube speed issues in Russia, following concerns raised by a leading cinema official, according to the Kremlin's statement on Friday.

Critics argue that authorities are intentionally disrupting YouTube to curtail Russian access to critical content about Putin's administration, though Russian officials dispute this claim. They attribute the disruptions to Google's alleged failure to upgrade equipment – an accusation the company and tech experts challenge.

Despite reported outages by internet monitoring services, communications regulator Roskomnadzor claimed no changes in YouTube's service quality. The Kremlin's spokesperson, Dimitry Peskov, suggested Google's non-compliance with Russian law caused the speed issues, directing technical queries to Roskomnadzor.

(With inputs from agencies.)