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Russia

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The Russian Federation 🇷🇺 (Russian: Российской Федерации), also known simply as Russia (Russian: Россия), is an intercontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. The capital and largest city is Moscow.

Statistics[]

The land area of Russia is 6,612,073 square miles (17,125,191 km2), making it the largest country by total area. As of July 2021, the population was estimated to be 142.3 million, making it the 9th most populous country in the world at the time.[1]

Apple in Russia[]

Medvedev and Steve Jobs

Steve Jobs demonstrating the iPhone 4 to then-Russian President Dmitry Medvedev on June 23, 2010

Apple does not directly operate any physical retail stores in Russia and distributes its products through local retailers. Apple also operates a Russian-language online store, though it has been known to suspend sales during past crises of Russian currency.[2] The largest reseller of Apple products in Russia is re:Store.[3] On March 2, 2022, re:Store briefly closed as Apple suspended operations in Russia, and re-opened the following day with price increases of about 50% due to the plummeting value of the Russian ruble.[4] The Central Bank of Russia intervened to prop up of the ruble.[5] After the State Duma passed legislation on June 7, 2022 to remove restrictions on parallel importing into the grey market, prices have since stabilized.[6]

Apple's iPhones had the 3rd largest market share among smartphone brands in Russia as of the 3rd quarter of 2021.[7] In 2019, Apple complied with Russian government demands to show Crimea as part of Russia when Apple Maps is used within the country.[8] In July 2021, a law took effect requiring technology companies doing business in Russia with over 500,000 daily users, such as Apple, Facebook, Google, and Twitter, to increase their physical presence within the country before the end of the year.[9] Later in the year, Apple introduced versions of the iPhone 13 series localized specifically for Russian carriers, which are also compatible with systems in Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and possibly other international carriers.[10] The 3rd-generation iPhone SE remains a popular model in Russia, as it has been possible to parallel import units through Kazakhstan, which uses the same carrier system as Russia.[6] It may also be possible to parallel import localized versions of the iPhone 14 series for the grey market in this manner, though Apple has yet to officially release the newer models into those regions.[11][12]

On February 25, 2022, Apple Pay operations in Russia were suspended due to international sanctions that were imposed because of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.[13] On March 1, Apple confirmed that it had stopped all product sales in Russia. The RT and Sputnik apps were also pulled from Apple's App Store in all markets outside of Russia.[14] On March 9, all App Store purchases and online payment services reportedly stopped functioning.[15] Google also suspended payment functionality for Android users in Russia, though free apps continued to be available.[16] Google continued operations in Russia until its assets and bank accounts there were seized by the Russian government, forcing its Russian subsidiary to declare bankruptcy.[17]

In March 2023, the administration of Russian president Vladimir Putin ordered government officials to stop using iPhones ahead of the 2024 elections.[18]

References[]

  1. ↑ Russia. World Factbook. Central Intelligence Agency (2021-10). Retrieved on 2021-12-24.
  2. ↑ pple closes Russian website because of rouble crisis by Jennifer Rankin, The Guardian. 2014-12-17.
  3. ↑ Russia's biggest Apple premium reseller closes stores by Stephen Warwick, iMore. 2022-03-02.
  4. ↑ Apple premium reseller reopens in Russia ahead of March Apple event, prices up 50% by Stephen Warwick, iMore. 2022-03-03.
  5. ↑ How Russia’s Central Bank Engineered the Ruble’s Rebound by Caitlin Ostroff, The Wall Street Journal. 2022-03-28.
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 Will sanctions prevent Apple products from reaching the Russian market?, TRT World. 2022-06-09.
  7. ↑ Apple’s iPhone is Russia’s third most popular smartphone brand by Dennis Sellers, AppleWorld.Today. 2021-12-20.
  8. ↑ Apple changes Crimea map to meet Russian demands, BBC, 2019-11-27
  9. ↑ Moscow tells 13 mostly U.S. tech firms they must set up in Russia by 2022 by Alexander Marrow and Gleb Stolyarov, Reuters. 2021-11-23.
  10. ↑ Apple iPhone 13 (Russia/A2635) 128, 256, 512 GB Specs, Everyi. Accessed 2022-09-22.
  11. ↑ Apple pulled out of Russia in March, but Russians can still buy the new iPhone 14 — here's how by Hullen Tan, Business Insider. 2022-09-08.
  12. ↑ Apple iPhone 14 (Russia/A2883) 128, 256, 512 GB Specs, Everyi. Accessed 2022-09-22.
  13. ↑ Apple Pay payments suspended in Russia with local banks hit by sanctions by Filipe Espósito, 9to5Mac. 2022-02-25.
  14. ↑ Apple halts product sales in Russia by Kif Leswing, CNBC. 2022-03-01.
  15. ↑ App Store purchases may have been turned off in Russia by William Gallagher, AppleInsider. 2022-03-10.
  16. ↑ Google is pausing Play Store payments for users in Russia — here’s why by Babu Mohan. 2022-03-10.
  17. ↑ Google Russia forced to declare bankruptcy after bank account seizure by Ron Amadeo, Ars Technica. 2022-05-18.
  18. ↑ Kremlin tells officials to stop using iPhones – Kommersant newspaper by Reuters, FX Empire. 2023-03-20.

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