Facebook And Instagram's Russia-Wide Ban Upheld By Court Over 'Extremist Activity'

The Moscow city court upheld a Russia-wide ban on Meta Platforms Inc’s META Facebook and Instagram after it was found guilty of "extremist activity" in March, Russian News Agency TASS reported.

What Happened: In order to exert greater control over information flows in the country amid the invasion of Ukraine, Russia had restricted access to Meta's flagship platforms Facebook and Instagram, along with fellow social network Twitter Inc TWTR. 

The country banned Facebook for restricting access to Russian media, while it targeted Instagram later after the company said it would allow social media users in Ukraine to post messages urging violence against President Vladimir Putin and Russian troops sent to the country.

On March 10, Meta had said that as a result of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, "we have temporarily made allowances for forms of political expression that would normally violate our rules, like violent speech such as, 'Death to the Russian invaders." It added that the company "still won't allow credible calls for violence against Russian civilians."

Russia has also questioned foreign platforms' treatment of its own media, where some of them carry labels of being 'state-controlled.'

Price Action: According to data from Benzinga Pro, Meta shares were trading 1.75% higher in the premarket session on Tuesday.