Russian Duma speaker proposes considering ban on copyright royalty payments to foreign agents

MOSCOW. March 5 (Interfax) - Russian State Duma Speaker Vyacheslav Volodin, following the adoption of a bill that bans advertising by foreign agents, proposed considering a possible ban on paying copyright and related rights royalties to them.

"There have recently been initiatives to prohibit payments of copyright and related rights royalties to foreign agents - actors, musicians, writers - all those who engage in discrediting our Armed Forces, malign our country and, as a rule, reside abroad," Volodin said on his Telegram channel on Tuesday.

"It is unacceptable to feed the scoundrels, who sling mud at Russia, by transferring money to them at the expense of our citizens," he said.

Volodin asked his Telegram channel subscribers to express their opinion on this matter.

The bill recently passed by the State Duma that bans placing advertisements on foreign agents' resources, "has demonstrated its efficiency over the several days following its adoption," he said.

"Some have already announced the closure of their projects, others are reducing their editorial staff. The forecast is that enacting this law will result in foreign agents losing 50% to 80% of their advertising income. And, according to experts, that was around five billion rubles last year," Volodin said.