Report: Google halts ad sales in Russia as censorship demands grow

MOSCOW, Mar 4 (PRIME) -- Alphabet’s Google said on Thursday that it had stopped selling online advertising in Russia, a ban that covers search, YouTube, and outside publishing partners, Reuters reported on Friday.

The move by the world’s top seller of online advertisements by revenue follows similar pauses in Russia by Twitter and Snap after Russia started its operation in Ukraine.

“In light of the extraordinary circumstances, we’re pausing Google ads in Russia,” the company said in a statement. “The situation is evolving quickly, and we will continue to share updates when appropriate.”

Google earlier had banned Russian state-funded media from buying or selling advertisements through its technology. It also had invoked its sensitive events policy, which bars marketing that seeks to take advantage of the military operation, with an exception for protest advertisements.

The Russian communications regulator on Monday ordered Google to stop showing advertisements that contained inaccurate information about casualties sustained by Russian forces and Ukrainian civilians, Reuters reported.

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