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Major internet advertising recipients encompass a substantial number of large distributors

Government intends to decide on recipients of financial aid, funded by a new internet ad distributor tax, with the provisional list prepared by the ministry. The Russian authorities will make the ultimate call. - Business Perspective. Yekaterinburg

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Government-selected recipients will acquire financial aid from a new internet ad distributor tax,...
Government-selected recipients will acquire financial aid from a new internet ad distributor tax, as outlined in a provisional list by the Ministry of Digital Development in Yekaterinburg. The Russian administration will ultimately decide on the recipients.

Major internet advertising recipients encompass a substantial number of large distributors

Rewritten Article:

Russian Digital Giants in the Spotlight as Ministry Announces State Support List

The Ministry of Digital Development is planning to offer state support to a selection of information resources, taking a 3% cut from online advertising revenue, according to Forbes. Big names on the prospective list include Yandex.ru, 2GIS, VK (Mail.ru, Zen, Vk.com, Odnoklassniki, RuStore, VK Video), Rutube, Litres service, Honest Sign platform (honestznak.ru), Gosuslugi portal, Unified Register of Internet Advertising, and Specialized Platform for Disclosure of Detailed Information about Industry Software Products (russoft.ru).

These companies are front-runners in the Russian IT industry and generate the lion's share of digital advertising revenues. The law gives software developers whose software is included in the registry of domestic software access to state support. However, according to Philipp Danko, general director of O2Consulting, it would be prudent to expand the list to include smaller and medium-sized digital platforms to prevent concentration of funding and establish clearer criteria, such as a minimum advertising turnover. He also suggests an audit by independent experts to monitor the proper allocation of funds and to eliminate duplication with other state support programs. The final decision lies with the Russian government.

As per the new law that took effect on April 1, 2025, online advertising distributors (media, bloggers, advertising system operators, and intermediaries between them and advertisers) are obligated to hand over 3% of their income to the federal budget. According to Roskomnadzor, advertisers spent a staggering 381 billion rubles on internet promotion in the first half of 2024, a 50% increase from the same period last year. The Russian Association of Communications Agencies (AKAR) anticipates the internet advertising market in Russia to reach almost half a trillion rubles in 2024, amounting to no less than 15 billion rubles in annual contributions to the treasury.

Starting September 1, 2025, amendments to the federal laws "On Countering Extremist Activity" and "On Advertising" will come into force, forbidding the placement of ads on information resources that are deemed undesirable or banned in Russia (similar restrictions are already in place for foreign agents).

For a deeper insight, take a look at "The online advertising market for small and medium-sized businesses grew by 23% in value in 2024."

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  1. I'm not sure if this state support will benefit all sectors of the Russian digital finance market, as it seems to primarily target the larger digital platforms.
  2. The expansion of the state support list to include smaller digital platforms, as suggested by Philipp Danko, could potentially redistribute funding and contribute positively to the finance sector of these smaller platforms.

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