In June 2024, the number of Rutube video hosting users in Russia increased significantly, as reported by Vedomosti, citing research company Mediascope. According to the source, the audience of YouTube and VKontakte also increased, but not as quickly. For example, the number of YouTube users increased by 9.4%, and VKontakte by 5% over the same period.
Karen Kazaryan, director of the Institute for Internet Research, and Maxim Ryabyko, board member of the Association for the Protection of Copyright on the Internet, emphasized in an interview with the portal that the growth of Rutube’s audience was stimulated by the appearance on the site of content that violates copyright from large foreign companies and streaming services that left Russia in 2022.
