The international organization Top10VPN has calculated
Posted: Wed Jan 22, 2025 6:46 am
According to estimates by the international Top10VPN project, in 2023 the global economy suffered about $9 billion in losses from deliberate internet shutdowns and resource blocking. The Russian economy was the hardest hit, with losses amounting to more than $4 billion.
According to analysts, in reality france whatsapp number database the damage from restricting access to popular foreign social networks in Russia may be even several times greater, since blocking not only entails lost income for citizens, but also slows down economic development
The bitterness of loss
the losses from deliberate internet shutdowns and blocking of social networks in different countries around the world. According to its estimates, Russia lost the most from these restrictions in 2023 — $4.02 billion. Top10VPN points out that it did not include the losses from blocking Facebook and Instagram (owned by Meta, which is recognized as extremist in Russia and banned) and X (formerly Twitter, blocked in Russia) after February 2023, since the organization takes into account the permanent blocking of resources in a given country only for the first 365 days after its start, believing that many economic consequences are overcome by the gradual transition of users to other platforms. In Russia, these social networks were blocked in February 2022.
In total, according to Top10VPN, in 2023 the global economy lost $9.01 billion due to shutdowns, restrictions, interruptions and blocking of the Internet and applications. In second place after Russia is Ethiopia with damages of $1.59 billion, and in third place is Iran with losses of $920.3 million.
The service analyzes the economic losses from internet shutdowns since 2019 and provides a rating of 20-25 countries that have suffered the most. The assessment of losses includes blocking social networks, shutdowns and slowdowns of the internet. Researchers calculate the damage and economic consequences as a result of internet disruptions and blocking access to services and applications using a tool developed by the non-governmental organization Netblocks (engaged in monitoring the internet). It is based on indicators from the World Bank, the International Telecommunication Union, Eurostat and the US Census.
It could be worse
Experts and market participants interviewed by Forbes state that a large share of economic losses within Russia are indeed related to the blocking and withdrawal of foreign social networks and advertising tools, primarily Facebook, Instagram and Google Ads. "They were among the most effective platforms for promoting brands until the spring of 2022, and were used not only by large businesses, but also by small and medium-sized businesses. The marketing budgets of the latter are quite significant in the split of the Russian advertising market," reflects Dmitry Fedoseyev, Managing Director of Hybrid Russia. "For Russian businesses that have lost effective promotion channels, each new customer has become significantly more expensive, which means that the number of clients brought by advertising has decreased."
The Russian economy is larger than the economies of Iran and Ethiopia, and Russia has been more integrated into Western advertising ecosystems, says Ivan Begtin, director of the Information Culture NGO. According to him, Iran was under sanctions even before the emergence of Facebook, Google and other major resources, and Russian advertisers have been interacting with them since the very beginning of the development of the Internet economy.
According to analysts, in reality france whatsapp number database the damage from restricting access to popular foreign social networks in Russia may be even several times greater, since blocking not only entails lost income for citizens, but also slows down economic development
The bitterness of loss
the losses from deliberate internet shutdowns and blocking of social networks in different countries around the world. According to its estimates, Russia lost the most from these restrictions in 2023 — $4.02 billion. Top10VPN points out that it did not include the losses from blocking Facebook and Instagram (owned by Meta, which is recognized as extremist in Russia and banned) and X (formerly Twitter, blocked in Russia) after February 2023, since the organization takes into account the permanent blocking of resources in a given country only for the first 365 days after its start, believing that many economic consequences are overcome by the gradual transition of users to other platforms. In Russia, these social networks were blocked in February 2022.
In total, according to Top10VPN, in 2023 the global economy lost $9.01 billion due to shutdowns, restrictions, interruptions and blocking of the Internet and applications. In second place after Russia is Ethiopia with damages of $1.59 billion, and in third place is Iran with losses of $920.3 million.
The service analyzes the economic losses from internet shutdowns since 2019 and provides a rating of 20-25 countries that have suffered the most. The assessment of losses includes blocking social networks, shutdowns and slowdowns of the internet. Researchers calculate the damage and economic consequences as a result of internet disruptions and blocking access to services and applications using a tool developed by the non-governmental organization Netblocks (engaged in monitoring the internet). It is based on indicators from the World Bank, the International Telecommunication Union, Eurostat and the US Census.
It could be worse
Experts and market participants interviewed by Forbes state that a large share of economic losses within Russia are indeed related to the blocking and withdrawal of foreign social networks and advertising tools, primarily Facebook, Instagram and Google Ads. "They were among the most effective platforms for promoting brands until the spring of 2022, and were used not only by large businesses, but also by small and medium-sized businesses. The marketing budgets of the latter are quite significant in the split of the Russian advertising market," reflects Dmitry Fedoseyev, Managing Director of Hybrid Russia. "For Russian businesses that have lost effective promotion channels, each new customer has become significantly more expensive, which means that the number of clients brought by advertising has decreased."
The Russian economy is larger than the economies of Iran and Ethiopia, and Russia has been more integrated into Western advertising ecosystems, says Ivan Begtin, director of the Information Culture NGO. According to him, Iran was under sanctions even before the emergence of Facebook, Google and other major resources, and Russian advertisers have been interacting with them since the very beginning of the development of the Internet economy.