According to recent news, Russia has imposed a massive fine on Google, amounting to an incredible 2 undecillion rubles, which is approximately $20 dectillion. This astronomical sum is more than the total wealth of the world, highlighting the severity of the issue at hand.
The legal battle stems from Google's decision to block pro-Russian channels on YouTube, including those like Russia 1 and RT. Russia claims that Google owes this enormous sum of money after refusing to pay fines that have accumulated due to the blocking of these channels.
When discussing the magnitude of the fine, a Moscow judge described it as 'a case with many, many zeroes.' The World Bank estimates the global economy to be around $100 trillion, which is a 12-zero figure. In comparison, the fine against Google is 36 zeroes long, making it an unimaginable amount of money.
In 2022, Google closed its offices in Russia following the events in Ukraine. Its Russian subsidiary, Google LLC, declared bankruptcy. However, despite this, Google still hosts multiple services in Russia, including its search engine and YouTube.
Dmitry Peskov, the Kremlin spokesperson, admitted that he 'can't even pronounce this figure right' when asked about the lawsuit. He added that the massive amount of money was 'filled with symbolism' and that Google 'should not be restricting the actions of our broadcasters on its platform.' Google, on the other hand, stated that the ongoing legal matters will not have a material adverse effect on its earnings.