Google Moves Some Servers to Russian Data Centers

MOSCOW--Russian state-controlled telecommunications company Rostelecom said Google Inc. has moved some servers to Russian data centers to comply with a controversial law that mandates that Internet companies store Russians' personal data within the country's borders, a person familiar with the matter said Friday.

A representative of Rostelecom told a meeting with the communications ministry and data centers that Google has begun placing some of its servers at Rostelecom's data centers, said a person who was at the meeting, confirming a report by the RBC news website.

Another person who works in the industry also said Google has begun moving some of its servers to Russia.

Google's Russia office declined to comment but its spokeswoman said the company is studying the law. A Rostelecom spokesman declined to comment.

Russian officials say the law, which comes into effect on Sept. 1, is a security measure to protect against foreign threats. But rights advocates describe it as part of a drive to increase scrutiny of the Internet and cut freedom of information. Social networks including Facebook, Twitter and Google+ are one of the country's few remaining spaces for dissent.

Online marketplace eBay Inc. said the company is working "to determine an optimal solution that balances legal and regulatory requirements with the interests of our customers."

Some analysts have said the law will be difficult to implement, as global Internet companies will have to track which data come from Russia.

The cost for Google to comply with the law may be only from tens of thousands to hundreds of thousands of dollars, as they will use their own servers and only need to hire data centers' racks and space, said Karen Kazaryan, chief analyst at the Russian Association for Electronic Communications, a trade body representing the Internet industry.

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