The American technology company Hewlett-Packard, known globally as HP, ultimately ceased its operations in Russia. The corporate website was closed, and customer support for Russian users was withdrawn. This development, as reported by Mash, marked a significant shift in HP’s regional strategy and left many customers without access to official assistance channels.
According to reporting, starting March 28, 2022, the support services that help update HP device drivers and troubleshoot issues stopped functioning for users in Russia. HP did suspend product deliveries in March 2022 due to international sanctions and then announced a broader decision to wind down business activities in both Russia and Belarus. This sequence reflected the company’s effort to align its operations with evolving geopolitical and regulatory realities, while mitigating risk across its global supply chain.
HP’s public statement at the time underscored a strategic shift: it no longer made sense to continue operating in Russia and Belarus, and the firm committed to methodically winding down the remaining business activities in those markets. The statement, reported by Mash, signaled a definitive stage in HP’s exit from the region and a move to minimize ongoing exposure in a challenging operating environment.
Independent observers noted that the last shipments to Russian customers occurred in February, and in parallel, HP proceeded with the liquidation of the Russian legal entity known as LLC HP Inc. The Russian division had been officially established in 2015, with the company previously supporting, guaranteeing, and selling HP-branded products within the market. By the close of 2022, the firm faced substantial financial losses, estimated at 1.7 billion rubles, reflecting the broader economic strain and the impact of sanctions on its regional footprint. These figures illustrate how geopolitical factors can directly affect multinational operations and local market presence over a relatively short period.
Earlier reports also mentioned a separate incident where millions of printers around the world were affected by a bug tied to a newer software version. This issue, while unrelated to the exit from Russia, highlights how global product ecosystems can experience simultaneous challenges—ranging from software defects to strategic corporate shifts—that ripple through end users and partners alike. The convergence of a technical fault with a strategic withdrawal underscores the complexity multinational technology firms navigate when operating across diverse regulatory landscapes and markets.