The Russian media watchdog, Roskomnadzor, has once again added the gaming community website Steam to its registry of banned websites containing prohibited information in Russia. This information was revealed through data published on the agency’s official page. According to the announcement, the Steam Community website was added to the registry of prohibited resources on August 23, based on Federal Law No. 149-FZ „On Information, Information Technologies, and Protection of Information.“
The published message stated that a „page“ of the Steam Community portal had been added to the registry, without specifying which page exactly. The reason for Roskomnadzor’s decision to include it in the registry was also not disclosed. It is important to note that the online digital content store Steam, which is part of the Steam Community, was not included in the list of banned websites.
This is not the first time that the Steam gaming community website has been added to Roskomnadzor’s registry of prohibited sites. In February of this year, the portal was added to the registry based on a decision by the Ministry of Internal Affairs for disseminating information on the production of narcotics. Once the administrators of the website removed the prohibited information, the site was removed from the regulator’s registry. However, access to the resource for Russian users was not restricted.
Furthermore, throughout the day, there were reported issues with the operation of the Steam platform. According to the resource Downdetector, around 16:00 Moscow time, there were over 11,500 complaints about the unstable operation of Steam. A few hours later, the situation stabilized. The platform’s malfunction affected not only Russia but also users from other countries. In the last 24 hours, users from the United States (2,500 complaints), France (4,500 complaints), Germany (16,200 complaints), and several other countries reported problems with Steam’s operation.
In conclusion, the repeated addition of the Steam Community website to Roskomnadzor’s registry of banned websites highlights the ongoing challenges faced by online platforms in complying with Russian regulations. The issues with Steam’s operation further emphasize the global impact of such disruptions on users worldwide. As the situation continues to evolve, it remains to be seen how both the platform and the regulatory authorities will address these challenges in the future.