Page 20 - RusRPTAug24

20 I Companies & Markets bne August 2024
“Bulgaria is currently working towards completing these post- entry commitments and is encouraged to accelerate its efforts to fulfil the elements of the action plan that was adopted
by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) after Bulgaria
was placed on the FATF’s “grey list” of jurisdictions under increased monitoring in October 2023,” the ECB said.
The EC also concluded that Bulgaria does not meet the criteria for eurozone entry.
“In light of its assessment on legal compatibility and on
the fulfilment of the convergence criteria, and taking
into account the additional factors relevant for economic integration and convergence, the Commission considers that
bne:Tech
Who consumes the most power to mine bitcoins?
Vladimir Kozlov in Cyprus
For years, the Kremlin has wanted to block YouTube. However, Russian authorities have been dragging their heels, waiting for YouTube's local rivals to mature. Now that point is fast approaching: the growth of “RuTube” has been slow, but steady.
YouTube streaming speeds will be slowed due to “technical problems” with Google’s equipment in the country, state- owned telecom giant Rostelecom announced July 12. Rostelecom said that “growth in traffic” had led to a “serious overload” that serve YouTube videos and other Google services. “This may affect the download speed and playback quality of YouTube videos for users of all Russian operators,” Rostelecom said, the Moscow Times reported.
YouTube still on top
According to tech research firm Mediascope, watching videos accounts for 18% of Russians' total time spent on the Internet. YouTube remains the largest platform in this category. In March and April 2024, the service's monthly reach was 90mn people, and in May it grew to 96mn.
At last month's St. Petersburg International Economic Forum, Russia's digital development minister Maksut Shadaev announced that local service VK Video had outpaced YouTube in mobile traffic, albeit by a symbolic 1%.
Last year, the State Duma, Russian Parliament's lower
www.bne.eu
Bulgaria does not fulfil the conditions for the adoption of the euro,” the EC said.
Bulgaria’s 12-month inflation as of May this year was by 1% higher compared to the reference value and is projected to remain higher in the following months. Bulgaria can catch up at the end of 2024 or in the beginning of 2025, according to EC’s estimations.
Bulgaria’s central bank commented in a statement that the authorities will keep working on fulfilling all criteria for eurozone membership. Caretaker Prime Minister Dimitar Glavchev said the country still has a chance to become a member of the eurozone later in 2025.
chamber, ruled out blocking YouTube until the arrival of full- fledged local alternatives. Back then, Alexander Khinshtein, chairman of the State Duma's committee on information policy, told Interfax that "there is no adequate Russian replacement for YouTube at the moment, but the key word is 'at the moment'."
Window of opportunity
Several video streaming services are operating in Russia, which in one way or another can be considered YouTube's competitors. All of them have been recently gaining momentum, also taking advantage of a situation when YouTube is blocking pro-war and pro-Kremlin content.
In early July, YouTube blocked the channels of several major Russian artists who support the country's war in Ukraine, following an appeal from the Lithuanian Radio and Television Commission (LRTK). LRTK threatened the streaming giant with fines, insisting that hosting pro-war artists was in violation of the EU's sanctions.
Among the artists banished from YouTube were Shaman and Polina Gagarina, who were included in the EU's fourteenth package of sanctions against Russia last month over staging concerts in occupied regions of Ukraine and participating in state-sponsored propaganda events.
YouTube also suspended the channels of singers Oleg