Photo credit: Reuters

A Russian court has issued an astronomical fine against Google, demanding a payment of two undecillion roubles—a number with 36 zeroes—for restricting Russian state media channels on YouTube. This penalty, equating to a staggering $20,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000 in dollar terms, far exceeds Google’s own valuation of around $2 trillion and is many times greater than the global GDP, estimated at $110 trillion by the International Monetary Fund.

The fine, according to Russia’s state news agency Tass, is reportedly growing at a rapid pace, leading Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov to remark that even he “cannot pronounce this number,” but urged Google to take the penalty seriously.

The penalty relates to Google’s restriction of content from 17 Russian media outlets on YouTube, a measure that began in 2020 but escalated after Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine. Following sanctions, many Western companies ceased business in Russia, and Russian state media faced bans across Europe, leading to retaliatory actions from Moscow. In 2022, Google’s Russian subsidiary declared bankruptcy and stopped its commercial services in Russia, though its products remain available in the country.

This fine represents a significant escalation in the ongoing dispute between the Russian government and Google, which has faced previous penalties. In 2021, Russia’s media regulator accused Google of limiting access to Russian outlets, including RT and Sputnik, and supporting “illegal protest activity.” In 2022, the tech giant faced a 21.1 billion rouble fine for failing to restrict “prohibited” content about the Ukraine conflict and other issues.

Google has not commented on the latest penalty, and no public response has been given following a request for a statement.