Netflix suspends service in Russia in protest of Ukraine invasion
nme.comNetflix has suspended its service in Russia entirely in protest of the country’s invasion of Ukraine.The streaming service joins a growing list of companies that have stopped serving Russia since the full-scale invasion began on February 24.Netflix had previously announced a hold on Russian projects and acquisitions and refused to carry 20 Russian propaganda channels that it was required to host under Russian law.
Now, the service has been shut down entirely in the country.“Given the circumstances on the ground, we have decided to suspend our service in Russia,” a spokesperson told Variety of the move.The platform’s previous sanctions on the country had seen four Russian original works put on pause.
That includes the platform’s first Russian original Anna K, a modern retelling of Leo Tolstoy’s novel Anna Karenina, which wrapped filming last year, and the detective drama series Zato.The service launched in Russia in 2016 but still has only a small number of subscribers compared to its dominance worldwide.
While it has 222million subscribers globally, only approximately 1million of that number comes from Russia.The company has also made a 2015 documentary called Winter On Fire: Ukraine’s Fight For Freedom available to watch for free.
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