Russian state companies more than triple spending on landline phones amid internet restrictions
State-owned companies spent 118 million rubles on landline phones from January through August 2026, more than triple the amount spent in the same period a year earlier, Vedomosti reported, citing data from government procurement tracking services.
Russian state-owned companies more than tripled their spending on landline phones from January to August 2026, according to Vedomosti, which cited government procurement data. This amounts to 118 million rubles, a significant increase from the same period last year. The number of purchases for landline phones also rose by 12.5% year over year, reaching 3,595 units.
Telecommunications Equipment, an autonomous nonprofit organization, attributed this surge in demand to the internet restrictions imposed in different parts of Russia. Rostelecom President Mikhail Oseyevsky noted in March that Russians were increasingly requesting landline installations, especially in areas where mobile service and internet access had been disrupted.
He pointed out that "many very prominent people" were seeking a reliable home landline, particularly in light of mobile service and internet outages in several Moscow districts. These restrictions, according to Oseyevsky, were linked to tests of "whitelists."
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