Russia passes new law for electronics sold in the country

Nov 25, 2019 11:12 GMT  ·  By

Smartphones, computers, and even smart TVs sold in Russia must come with locally-developed apps pre-loaded, according to a new law that was passed earlier this month.

A report from the BBC reveals that Russia wants electronics to be sold with a series of Russian apps pre-installed beginning with July 2020. Devices that do not comply with these requirements will be banned, the report adds.

Like the other smartphones on the market, iPhones will have to comply with the new requirements as well, which technically means that Apple will have to bundle its devices with new Russian applications or leave the market entirely.

Accept it or else

“When we buy complex electronic devices, they already have individual applications, mostly Western ones, pre-installed on them,” Oleg Nikolayev, one of the Russian officials who proposed the new law, explains. “Naturally, when a person sees them, they might think that there are no domestic alternatives available. And if, alongside pre-installed applications, we will also offer the Russian ones to users, then they will have a right to choose.”

On the other hand, there are concerns that some companies may not agree with this compromise, mostly because of fears that the Russian apps that must be pre-installed could allow for snooping on users. Russian authorities, however, emphasize that the idea isn’t to replace the existing apps that are already pre-installed on devices on sale in the country, but to actually offer some alternatives to local buyers, thus increasing their exposure and helping highlight domestic developers.

Device manufacturers impacted by this decision are yet to comment on the new law, but most of them are expected to comply with it, especially because Russia is a large market and leaving it entirely would cause a substantial decline in revenue.