YouTube traffic has dropped by 80%.
On the blocking of video hosting in Russia пишет IT project "Backdoor." "Today, traffic volume has dropped to a mere 20% of normal—we're seeing increased, systematic blocking. It looks like that day has come."
A new wave of blocking began on December 19, the day of Putin's direct line. Blogger Vlad Bumaga asked him why the authorities were blocking YouTube. answered, that the company must comply with Russian laws if it wants to operate here.
After this, Roskomnadzor stated that "sees reasons" to take action against YouTube. Meanwhile, users of various mobile operators began complaining about YouTube being unavailable. Previously, problems had primarily occurred on fixed-line networks. Google stated that there were no technical issues on its end that would disrupt the service.
Restrictions on the video hosting service began in Russia in August. Roskomnadzor denied any responsibility for the blocking, blaming Google for the situation.
"WHAT THE FUCK?", "And here they're suffocating us?", "Leave YouTube alone, we fix cars with it!", "It's really bad that they're depriving us of diverse information! Hands off YouTube!"
— netizens are indignant, recalling North Korea and sharing ways to bypass the block. For some, everything works as before. Many aren't worried because they "have a VPN on 24/7."