Moscow (AFP)
Russian President Vladimir Putin promulgated on Monday a law that prohibits the sale in Russia of smartphones or computers if they are not equipped with software or Russian applications pre-installed.
This law, which will come into effect on July 1, 2020, is presented by the authorities as a means of promoting the country's technology companies in the face of foreign competition.
According to the text of this law published on the Russian official portal, "the consumer must have the opportunity to use certain types of technological products with pre-installed Russian programs".
The text specifies that the government will now establish a list of devices covered by the law, which should include phones, computers and "Smart TV". The Russian government will also establish a list of applications that will have to be pre-installed by the manufacturers.
In Russia, this controversial law has been dubbed "anti-Apple law", the US manufacturer has always refused to pre-install applications other than his own on his devices.
The promulgation of this text comes just weeks after a controversial law to create a "sovereign internet" in Russia, isolated from the big world servers.
The Russian authorities have been tightening the screws in recent years on the internet, blocking content and sites related to the opposition, but also services that refused to cooperate with them while the Internet is one of the last spaces of freedom for the opposition and the critical voices of power.
Another text promulgated Monday by Vladimir Putin also strengthens the fines for companies failing to comply with a law of 2015 forcing them to store the personal data of their Russian users on servers in Russia. The fines will now be up to six million rubles (84,400 euros).
© 2019 AFP