YouTube is not working well in Russia. We understand the reasons for what is happening

Since the beginning of summer, news about the possible blocking of YouTube in Russia has been increasingly appearing in various media. Such messages have become known to our citizens since 2022, but the new wave, in which absolutely all notable information platforms participated, was alarming. And so it seems that it began. At the end of July, many users recorded a serious slowdown in video hosting, but the reasons are still unclear. We also encountered the problem of reducing speed and decided to figure out what was happening and who was to blame.

It is worth starting with the first news about a possible block. In the summer of 2023, they started talking about it seriously, but at that time the rhetoric was rather reassuring. Deputy Chairman of the IT Committee of the State Duma Anton Gorelkin stated that there is no alternative to YouTube yet, so despite all the “hostility” from Google, it is not possible to block it. Users were skeptical of these statements; too many things were already blocked, but the issue was closed for a while.

And then, at the beginning of the summer of 2024, the same Anton Gorelkin made completely different statements:

Users immediately began to prepare for the worst, and with good reason. We just had to wait until July.

Around mid-July, Rostelecom reported serious technical problems in the operation of Google equipment in Russia – Google Global Cache (GGC). In simple terms, it is used precisely to speed up the loading of videos in a specific country. When a user wants to watch a popular video, he is not sent directly to Google servers, but uses GGC servers, where this video is stored for some time for quick access. Normally, GGC servers are installed on provider networks. Each country has its own, and there are several in Russia.

The explanation was simple. Since 2022, Google has stopped updating and expanding its technologies in our country, while traffic continued to grow. It is logical that this would have led to problems, outages and delays over time. If you do not change anything, everything described will only get worse.

Less than two weeks later, Rostelecom confirmed a decrease in the speed of loading videos on YouTube, especially in high-definition HD and 4K. Google and outdated hardware were again blamed.

However, literally the next day, the chairman of the State Duma Committee on Information Policy Alexander Khinshtein spoke, and the situation escalated sharply. The fact is that the official directly stated that the slowdown in video hosting is the result of the actions of our state, intended to show the YouTube administration that it no longer intends to tolerate sanctions, close the office and block bloggers who talk about Russian foreign policy with approval. At the same time, the official emphasized two points: the slowdown will affect only stationary PCs and is not aimed at its own citizens.

As we see, two opposing points of view were expressed. Naturally, everyone noticed the contradictions between Rostelecom and the version of the State Duma Commission, and therefore Alexander Khinshtein quickly prepared additional explanations, already referring to Google equipment in the same way as Rostelecom did. The official also noted that the number of GGC servers has been steadily decreasing since 2022, and the Google administration itself has proposed some solutions to solve the problem, but they were all temporary, since Russian data centers plan to stop such, not entirely legal cooperation, in August . which obviously affects the download speed.

It seems that the situation and the reasons were established, but on the same day Rostelecom issued a new statement, which already confirmed Khinshtein’s words about the participation of government agencies in slowing down YouTube. Once again, everything became foggy.

Since none of the official government sources could come to a common position and present a common version, we will consider both. The fact that there is no technical support from Google is undeniable. At the moment, the company does not update or expand its equipment in any way. Even at the time of Google’s departure from Russia, many experts warned about possible negative consequences for users of YouTube and other corporate services.

For a while, the so-called “direct connection” helped. Operators began to increase the number of direct connections to the company’s main networks, which significantly increased the speed of operation. For Google, this approach also proved beneficial, as it minimized the costs of transmitting content.

However, the problem with the GGC servers did not go away anywhere, and therefore even the direct connection method was only a delay, nothing more.

However, the influence of the government on the growth slowdown cannot be completely ignored. After a wave of complaints, some experts suggested that such “sudden problems” could not be related to outdated equipment, since such a deterioration in performance would happen gradually. We see a sharp and sudden increase among the vast majority of Russian users.

There is indeed a slowdown mechanism. Government agencies can use throttling and roll it out on TSPU equipment from different providers. TSPU are technical means to counter threats that telecom operators install on their networks. Such equipment is used to analyze internet traffic and filter it for prohibited content. It is a TSPU with a different purpose that can dramatically slow down selected services, for example YouTube. A similar mechanism has already been used for different social networks, so there is nothing stopping us from doing it again.

In early August, some users’ videos stopped loading completely. You know what helps, but not always. Professionals have already found some options, but it is clear that all crutches are temporary and will soon stop working. So what awaits us?

Despite all the scattered statements and declarations, there is still no information about a complete blocking of YouTube. But even without this, video hosting in Russia is expected to experience problems due to outdated GGC servers and a simple lack of bandwidth. The further it goes, the more complicated the situation will become, and therefore the state may not need drastic measures; waiting will be enough.

In addition, there are already a number of alternatives prepared for Russians, for example, VK Video or the good old RuTube. But let’s be honest, all the proposed options do not even come close to the comfort and quality of Google hosting. The company has been improving the service for years, testing various visual and technical solutions, while Russian versions strive to literally go in the same direction for 2-3 years, which is of course impossible.

One thing remains clear: making money on YouTube is becoming unrealistic. Many bloggers are already duplicating their content on other platforms and are receiving funding from Boosty, for example. This trend will only worsen in the future.

Despite all the reassuring statements, you should not expect the situation with YouTube to improve in the near future. And it does not matter at all whether the final point is determined at the instigation of government agencies or outdated technical support, the consequences for users will be just as sad.