Russian State Media is reporting that legislative changes are being proposed by the Federation’s Council Committee on Economic Policy that will allow the distribution of foreign films in Russia without the consent of the copyright holders, but with payment of remuneration to them. These proposals also include changes to the criminal code so that there is no criminal liability for users of such works (in other words, cinemas would face no criminal charge for copyright infringement).

Russian cinemas have faced a huge content deficit since March 2022, when the Moscow-based branches of major US studios halted all new releases across the region as a result of the invasion in Ukraine. For an industry that relied on Hollywood-produced films for 80% of its box office top ten in 2021, the withdrawal of these movies has had a huge impact on exhibitors’ ability to get customers in the door.