Hey, Zuck! Can you spare a buck? Facebook fails to pay $50 fine in Russia

Social media giant Facebook, with a market value of over $500 billion, failed to comply with a Russian court’s order to pay a fine of 3,000 rubles ($46) over its non-compliance with national law.

A decision on a fine was issued by the Russian court on April 12; it came into force on June 25, and the company had 60 days to voluntarily pay the fine.

Russian privacy laws, which came into force in 2015, require foreign online service providers to store Russian users’ personal data on servers located within the country’s borders. Facebook has so far failed to comply.

“Now that the deadline has passed, the bailiffs will take charge. It’s not clear yet how to get the money while the company has no assets in Russia, with the closest infrastructure located in Eastern Europe,” sources familiar with the situation told Kommersant daily.

They explained that, in order to recover money from Facebook, which doesn’t have an office in Russia, it will be necessary to institute proceedings in a California jurisdiction.

Media watchdog Roscomnadzor said last month that Twitter, which was also fined by the same court, has already paid the $46 fine. Legal proceedings against Facebook and Twitter were opened in Russia in January.

Several companies, including Viber and eBay, moved or began to move servers containing personal data to Russia in order to comply with the legislation. Firms that refused to comply were blocked.These included LinkedIn, BlackBerry, Line, Imo, and WeChat.

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg is the fifth-richest person in the world, with a net worth of about $68.2 billion.

For more stories on economy & finance visit RT's business section