Snap said on Tuesday that it has halted all advertising in Russia, Belarus and Ukraine to comply with sanctions placed against Russian businesses and individuals.
In a public note titled “We Support Ukraine,” Snap — the parent company of Snapchat — said the social platform will still be available in Ukraine, Belarus and Russia to help users communicate with one another, but that all ad sales to Russian and Belarusian companies and individuals had been stopped. The message also noted that 300 of Snap’s “most creative and talented team members” are from Ukraine, which was also the birthplace of Looksery, the augmented reality platform that Snap acquired in 2015.
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Snap said it has pledged over $15 million in humanitarian aid to support Ukraine, with the funding coming from Snap co-founders Evan Spiegel and Bobby Murphy and Looksery founder Victor Shaburov. The company is also providing emergency assistance to employees who need help safely relocating.
“This is a devastating conflict with far-reaching consequences, and we know the days and weeks ahead will be difficult,” the message said. “Above all, our focus remains on the health and safety of our team members. We will continue to work tirelessly to help our Ukrainian team members and their families, support our Snapchat community, and determine how we can help make positive contributions to the immense humanitarian efforts underway.”
Snap has followed other social platforms like YouTube, Twitter and Meta, the parent company of Facebook, in halting advertising in response to sanctions against Russia. YouTube and Meta have paused monetization for Russian state-owned media channels, while Twitter has begun labeling content from all Russian state-affiliated media.
Read the full post from Snap below.
We stand in solidarity with our Ukrainian team members and the people of Ukraine who are fighting for their lives and for their freedom. War is a scourge on our collective humanity, and in this case, it is a direct threat to many of our team members and their families. We are praying for their safety and for peace.
Ukraine is the birthplace of Looksery, the company that laid the foundation for Snap’s augmented reality platform, and has been the home of more than 300 of Snap’s most creative and talented team members. Over many years working with our Ukrainian colleagues and friends, we have gotten to know the inventiveness, strength, and resilience of the Ukrainian people.
We have been providing emergency assistance around the clock and helping team members safely relocate. We have pledged over $15 million in humanitarian aid to support organizations providing direct relief to the people of Ukraine. Many of our friends and teammates remain in Ukraine. Some have joined the fight to defend their country.
We do not have an office in Russia and we have stopped all advertising running in Russia, Belarus, and Ukraine. We are halting advertising sales to all Russian and Belarusian entities and are complying with all sanctions targeting Russian businesses and individuals. We do not accept revenue from Russian state-owned entities.
We continue to offer the Snapchat application in Ukraine, Belarus, and Russia as it remains an important communications tool for family and friends.
We are vigilantly monitoring our platform for any evidence of disinformation or misuse while we focus on providing accurate news coverage and information to our global community through our partnerships with media publishers on our Discover content platform. On Discover, we only feature content from verified media partners and creators, and we have never allowed Russian state media to distribute content.
This is a devastating conflict with far-reaching consequences, and we know the days and weeks ahead will be difficult. Above all, our focus remains on the health and safety of our team members. We will continue to work tirelessly to help our Ukrainian team members and their families, support our Snapchat community, and determine how we can help make positive contributions to the immense humanitarian efforts underway.
Ukraine is a nation whose incredible potential is helping to shape a more positive future for the world and we will not waver in our solidarity.
Team
Snap
