Russia investigating YouTube’s hosting of online casino promos

Russia’s anti-monopoly watchdog is investigating online video hosting portal YouTube for its hosting of Russian-language videos promoting unauthorized online casino sites.

On Tuesday, Russian media outlet RBC reported that the Federal Antimonopoly Service (FAS) had accepted a complaint filed by Russia’s Internet Video Association (IVA), which represents intellectual property rights holders, accusing YouTube of “gross and repeated” violations of Russia’s advertising rules.

In March, the IVA made a fuss about a Russian-language video promoting Curacao-licensed online casino Azino777 that ranked in the top-20 of Russia’s most-viewed online video advertising sources in January. The video, starring rapper AK-47, featured prominently on websites hosting pirated digital content, much of it belonging to IVA members.

The IVA’s current missive claims the Google-owned YouTube hosts “a lot of videos” featuring Azino777 and other forbidden online casinos, including Curacao-licensed Russian-language site AdmiralX. The IVA wants the FAS to prosecute YouTube/Google for violating Russia’s advertising and gambling laws.