Telegram Messenger LLP

Telegram Messenger LLP operates in the development and provision of access to. to the Internet messenger Telegram

Performance indicators

2023

Ownership of $400 million in cryptocurrency

As of the end of 2023, the Telegram platform owned about $400 million in digital assets. At the same time, the number of premium users of the messenger was approximately 4 million. Such indicators are reflected in Telegram financial documents disclosed at the end of August 2024.

According to the published data, in 2023, about 40% of Telegram's revenue was brought by activities related to digital assets, which belong to the areas of "integrated wallet" and "sale of collectibles." A wallet refers to specialized software that allows users to store, send, receive and trade cryptocurrency assets. In turn, the "sale of collectibles" covers user names and virtual phone numbers. The company also facilitates transactions between users for the sale of these items, receiving a commission for the provision of the service.

Telegram holds $400 million in cryptocurrency

The price of cryptocurrency Toncoin (TON) after the arrest of Pavel Durov in France decreased by about 20% - $6.8 to $5.6 as of August 26, 2024. Toncoin's market capitalization also suffered, down almost 2% to $13.42 billion. Despite the decrease in price and the change in market sentiment, various technical and market factors indicate that TON may be ready for a rebound. If the market perceives Durov's arrest as an isolated incident that will not cause fundamental damage to the Toncoin ecosystem, traders may see the possibility of buying against the background of panic.

According to Durov, the Telegram team has only about 50 employees, including 30 "strictly verified engineers." He said he recruited specialists by running programming competitions and trying to attract the winners of such competitions.^[1]

Losses at the end of the year - $173 million

At the end of 2023, Telegram's total loss amounted to about $173 million after taxes. At the same time, operating losses were at the level of $108 million, as stated in the materials published on August 30, 2024.

According to the Financial Times, referring to the financial statements of Telegram, in 2023 the company's revenue reached $342 million. The messenger belongs entirely to Pavel Durov, who was detained in France on August 24, 2024. It is noted that the arrest of the founder of Telegram may negatively affect the platform's plans for an initial public offering (IPO).

Telegram

According to the Financial Times, Telegram raised about $2.4 billion in debt financing due in 2026. In particular, in 2021, the messenger placed bonds for $1 billion, and the investors included Abu Dhabi state funds. In early 2024, the company raised $330 million. At the same time, according to the Telegram financial report for 2023, Durov personally acquired platform bonds worth at least $64 million as part of a comprehensive plan providing for the investment of "hundreds of millions" in the development of the messenger.

In 2023, Telegram's financial losses were partially offset by an increase in the value of digital assets. However, these assets also suffered in connection with the detention of Durov: against this background, the Toncoin rate fell by almost 20%.

It is noted that Durov plays a key role in making decisions regarding the future of Telegram. But such a centralized leadership style, according to Alexandra Urman, a researcher at the University of Zurich and an expert on social media, calls into question "whether Telegram can exist without Paul."^[2]

2024

A fine of 4 million rubles for refusing to remove prohibited information in Russia

On October 15, 2024, the Tagansky District Court of Moscow fined Telegram Messenger 4 million rubles for non-deletion of prohibited information. The company was found guilty of failure to remove information subject to elimination (part 2 of article 13.41 of the Administrative Code). For Telegram, this is the seventh fine since the beginning of 2024 for violating Russian laws. A similar Telegram fine was issued in August 2024. The reason was the refusal to remove fakes about the actions of the Russian army in the zone of special operation in Ukraine.

The arrest of the founder of the company Pavel Durov in France due to the refusal to play according to the rules of the United States and their satellites

Main article: Pavel Valerievich Durov

Telegram's first clear intentions to enter the IPO were in January 2021 with a horizon of 2-3 years, but in 4 years no progress, why?

There are only two places to raise capital for a large technology corporation - China and the United States, but Telegram is banned in China, and undesirable in the United States. It is possible to exit in Europe or other US-related markets, but the essence does not change.

Telegram in its current form and structure will never be able to be located in the United States due to regulatory requirements, including the disclosure of information about the structure of equity capital, financial performance, and most importantly the disclosure of information about users and data processing methods.

There are a range of regulatory requirements for tech companies, but even more stringent requirements for social media and any platforms that manage user data.

In order to become public in the jurisdiction of the United States and allies (EU, Japan, South Korea, Australia, Canada, Singapore, etc.), Telegram will have to play according to the rules of the system, which means:

• Open a direct gateway for data exchange with the special services of the United States and the collective West.

• Introduce strict content moderation and filtering procedures.

• Disclose sensitive information about the structure of the Telegram ecosystem, methods of collecting, storing and processing information and introduce partial de-anonymization of users.

• Reveal the Telegram business model and hundreds more other requirements for public companies.

Durov did not play according to US rules, pursuing an independent policy, losing billions and possibly also freedom.

In the charges brought against Durov, a significant emphasis is placed on an attempt to bypass the financing mechanisms controlled by the collective West and this is a very important nuance.

After the SEC decision in early 2020, institutional investors in the United States and Europe turned away from Telegram, and the main demand for bonds was received from Middle Eastern investors.

Durov wanted to develop crypto projects, but the first attempt was forcibly frozen by an agreement with the SEC, and the second attempt began in 2024.

After three years of calm, Durov made a second attempt.

There were many events, but Spydell Finance highlighted four main concepts:

• Durov planned to make Toncoin the main cryptocurrency integrated into Telegram. This would allow users to transact, pay for premium features and support content creators directly in the app.

• One of the key projects was the development of a Toncoin-based payment system that would allow users to make instant transfers and payments. This would include not only internal transactions, but also support for external payments, which could make Telegram a full-fledged financial platform.

• An important initiative was the creation of a platform for decentralized applications (DApps) based on TON. This would allow developers to create and distribute applications within Telegram using decentralized infrastructure, which would increase security and independence from centralized servers.

• Durov also planned to introduce TON-based NFT support. The platform for creating, selling and exchanging non-interchangeable tokens was supposed to become an important part of Telegram, allowing users to create and trade digital assets directly inside the messenger.

From March to June, the 2024 of the TON crypt grew almost 4 times from 2 to 8 dollars (now 5.2).

TON could become the only cryptocurrency secured by real cash flows among a huge social base with the potential to generate hundreds of billions of dollars of turnover per year (real transactions in the ecosystem, not trade turnover).

Durov wanted to create his own financial system, isolated and independent of the fiat currency and the rules for the functioning of the global financial system.

Anonymous nature of Telegram + deep integration of Toncoin (built-in crypto wallet, end-to-end payments and settlements) + decentralized applications in the TON ecosystem + distributed architecture of a related ecosystem = a new financial and social world that is not controlled by the collective West and is not controlled by anyone among official structures.

For this, there were all the prerequisites and resources - almost 1 billion users and a developed digital infrastructure. Durov could become the most influential non-systemic person in the world.

End-to-end implementation of the crypto wallet through the @ wallet bot began in 2024, although integration was in April 2022. Plus, the expansion of channel monetization using crypto assets.

Apparently, an attempt to build an independent financial system (through crypto assets) acted as the final trigger for the "defeat of Telegram."

Pavel Durov is the brain of Telegram, providing promotion, financing and strategic development of the platform, while Nikolai Durov is purely technical aspects and programming of the system core.

$330 million bond issue

Telegram issued 330 million bonds dollars to guarantee further expansion, it said on March 18, 2024. Pavel Durov

A fine of 4 million rubles for refusing to delete false data on the losses of the Russian Federation

On March 8, 2024, it became known that the Telegram messenger was fined 4 million rubles for refusing to delete inaccurate data on the losses of the Russian army during a special operation. The corresponding decision was made by a magistrate in Moscow.

According to TASS, the decision regarding Telegram was made at the request of Roskomnadzor. The agency found in publications in a number of Telegram channels the presence of inaccurate information about the losses of the Russian Federation in the course of special information. This is said to be confirmed by screenshots taken on September 8 and 11, 2023. At the same time, on September 1, 2023, changes to the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation came into force, according to which social networks had responsibility for non-compliance with the requirements of the law on self-control.

Telegram fined 4 million rubles

After the appearance of false publications, Telegram did not take measures to remove them. On this basis, a protocol was drawn up, which was submitted to the court. Telegram representatives did not appear at the meeting on the case, despite the fact that they were "notified of the place and time of its holding through seven different official email addresses."

To recognize Telegram Messenger Inc. guilty of committing an administrative offense under Article 19.7.10-4 of the Administrative Code of the Russian Federation, and to impose a punishment on him in the form of an administrative fine in the amount of 4,000,000 rubles, the ruling says.

This article assumes responsibility for violation of the aforementioned law on self-control - refusal by the administration of a messenger or social network to remove content previously recognized as prohibited for distribution in the Russian Federation. The article entails the imposition of an administrative fine on citizens in the amount of 100 thousand to 200 thousand rubles; for officials - from 500 thousand to 800 thousand rubles; for legal entities - from 4 million to 6 million rubles.^[3]

2023

Start of sales of Telegram bonds with conversion into shares in IPO

At the end of October 2023, Russia began selling Telegram bonds with conversion into shares in an IPO. This offer was made to clients by BCS World of Investments.

The fact that the brokerage company proposes to purchase Telegram bonds issued in 2021, which can be converted into shares at an IPO with a guaranteed yield, is written by Vedomosti with reference to a presentation published on the Wutmu Telegram channel about TON. The Association of Bondholders (ABO) confirmed to the newspaper that it had received appeals from investors familiar with the content of the presentation.

It follows from it that bond buyers will be able to convert their face value into shares in the Telegram IPO, which is scheduled for the second or third quarter of 2025. The conversion is planned at a discount:

• 10% if the IPO takes place before March 2024;
• 15% in the event of an IPO until March 2025;
• 20% if the IPO takes place before March 2026.

If the shares are not placed, investors are promised to repay the bonds in 2026.

The AVO drew attention to the terms of the BCS offer for customers. The presentation, in particular, says that at the time of the conclusion of the settlement contract, the underlying asset (Telegram bonds with a coupon of 7%) was not purchased. On the same slide, it indicates that if BCS fails to purchase the underlying asset, customers will be refunded money with a yield of 3% per annum. The BCS declined to comment at the request of Vedomosti.

Earlier, the newspaper wrote that Telegram's IPO was planned for 2023. The most attractive scenario for Telegram shareholders is a direct listing, for example, on New York, NYSE as the corporate messenger did, experts Slack interviewed by the publication note. In their opinion, during the initial placement, Telegram can be estimated at $30-50 billion.^[4]

PRE-IPO Telegram Inc.

For the first time, a court in the Russian Federation fined Telegram for violating the circulation of personal data

On August 24, 2023, the court RUSSIAN FEDERATION fined for the first time Telegram for violating the circulation of personal data. The reason for bringing Telegram to justice was the appeal to Roskomnadzor the employee Federal Accreditation Service Lesya Len.

For the first time, the court found Telegram guilty under Part 5 of Art. 13.11 of the Administrative Code of the Russian Federation (failure by the operator to specify personal data if they are inaccurate or illegally obtained) and sentenced her to a fine of 50 thousand rubles, - ruled judge Timur Vakhrameev (quoted by TASS).

According to the news agency, Lesya Len noticed that the post "Everyone is not lazy" appeared on the AntiGost Telegram channel. It indicated that Len took the post of deputy head of the department for work with registers and analysts of Rosaccreditation. At the same time, Len is a former citizen of Ukraine. It emphasizes that Len received a Russian passport in February 2018, and in July she was hired by the Russian government agency.

The Telegram channel also indicated that Len is a graduate of the Kyiv National University of Internal Affairs and has more than 10 years of work experience (11.2004 - 06.2015) as a senior operative of the operational escort group of a special company of the judicial police "Griffin" of the Ministry of Ukraine in the Nikolaev region. The woman's relatives permanently reside in Ukraine. Roskomnadzor, at the request of Laziness, demanded that Telegram delete her personal data, but this was not done.

By August 2023, the Russian law "On Personal Data" obliges Russian and foreign companies to store personal information of Russians only in Russia. In case of violations, the service may be blocked, and the company that committed the violation may be fined.^[5]

Fine of 4 million rubles for refusing to remove 32 channels with inaccurate information about SVO

On June 20, 2023, the magistrate of the Tagansky district of Moscow fined Telegram messenger 4 million rubles for refusing to delete information prohibited in Russia. The company was found guilty under Part 2 of Article 13.41 of the Administrative Code of the Russian Federation. The messenger was assigned the maximum possible fine provided for by this article of the Administrative Code of the Russian Federation.

According to RIA Novosti, citing the decision of the magistrate of the judicial district of the Tagansky district of Moscow Timur Vakhrameev, representatives of the messenger do not go to meetings in principle, but they paid the fines. On June 20, 2023, service representatives did not participate in the meeting either.

At the request of the First Deputy Prosecutor General, Roskomnadzor received 32 notifications to a number of Telegram channels (including the resources of foreign media agents: Radio Liberty (the organization is included by the Ministry of Justice in the list of foreign agents), Dozhd TV channel (the organization is included by the Ministry of Justice in the list of foreign agents), Meduza (the organization is included by the Ministry of Justice in the list of foreign agents), "Caucasus Realities" (the organization is included by the Ministry of Justice in the list of foreign agents), "Siberia Realities" (the organization is included by the Ministry of Justice in the list of foreign agents), etc.) with the requirement to restrict access to inaccurate information about the conduct of a special military operation of the Russian Federation in Ukraine and its participants. In addition, information about the illegal acquisition of fake documents was subject to removal.

According to RIA Novosti, from the beginning of 2021 to June 20, 2023, Telegram was fined 17 times under similar protocols for a total of 50.5 million rubles. At the same time, the head of the Ministry of Digital Science Maksut Shadayev said that there are no plans to restrict the work of instant messengers for Russians to communicate.^[6]

2022

Fine €5.1 million from the Federal Department of Justice of Germany

On October 17, 2022, it became known that the Federal Department of Justice of the Federal Republic of Germany imposed a fine on the Telegram messenger totaling 5.1 million euros for alleged violations in 2021 and 2022. German law on improving law enforcement on social networks (NetzDG).

Telegram FZ-LLC, as a provider of the Telegram social network, is charged with violations against the obligation to provide legal warning routes [about illegal content], as well as against the obligation to appoint an authorized person within the country, the document says.

Decision of Roskomnadzor on the application of coercion measures

Roskomnadzor On August 19, 2022 Telegram , he announced his decision to apply coercion measures against TikTok Pte. Zoom Video Communications Ltd., Telegram Messenger, Inc., , Inc.,. and Discord, Inc, Pinterest Inc. in the form of informing search engines Internet users about the violation by companies of the requirements of Russian the law. More. here

A fine of 4 million rubles for refusing to remove a bot with data from the Russian military

On August 16, 2022, the judicial district No. 422 of the Tagansky district fined Telegram 4 million rubles for refusing to delete information that is prohibited by the laws of the Russian Federation. The company was found guilty of committing an administrative offense under Part 2 of Art. 13.41 of the Administrative Code (failure by the owner of an information resource in the information and telecommunication network of the Internet to remove information if the obligation to delete it is provided for by law).

As it clarifies TASS with reference to the press service of the judicial district, the messenger was fined for refusing to remove the bot "Look for your own," which reveals personal data the servicemen taking part in a special military operation on. To Ukraine The order to remove the bot came to Telegram from. Roskomnadzor

Also, according to the data announced in court, Roskomnadzor's claims to Telegram arose due to the refusal to remove channels calling for anti-government actions against the special operation and with inaccurate information about the losses of the Russian military.

In addition, the messenger was found guilty of failing to remove information in some Telegram channels containing calls for extremist activity. The case file says that we are talking about content that called for sabotage on the railways to complicate the movement of equipment of the Russian Armed Forces, and also contained arguments about anarchism. In this case, the court fined Telegram 7 million rubles.

Thus, in one day the service was fined by a Moscow court in the amount of 11 million rubles. Moreover, this is not the first fine for the company for refusing to delete data prohibited by Russian law.

Representatives of the messenger on August 16, 2022 did not appear in court, although they were notified of the date of the meeting. In this regard, the case was considered in their absence, reports TASS.^[7]

Temporary blocking of the messenger in Brazil

In March 2022, the Supreme Court Brazil decided to block Telegram in the country. Local telecom operators have already begun to receive the corresponding notification.

Later in March, a judge of the Supreme Federal Court of Brazil withdrew the decision to block Telegram, the messenger continues to work in the country.

Earlier, Pavel Durov explained the situation with communication problems, which arose, among other things, due to the workload of moderators due to the military operation of the Russian Armed Forces in Ukraine.

2021

A fine of 3 million rubles for non-removal of prohibited content

On November 18, 2021, the Magistrate's Court in Moscow fined Telegram another 3 million rubles for refusing the messenger to delete information that is prohibited in Russia. The company was found guilty of an administrative offense under Part 2 of Art. 13.41 of the Administrative Code of the Russian Federation (refusal to delete information, the removal of which is mandatory in accordance with the legislation of the Russian Federation).

According to Interfax, the total amount of fines received by Telegram from the beginning of 2021 to November 18 exceeded 40 million rubles. Some of the regulations have not yet entered into force.

According to Roskomnadzor, in 2021 Telegram, Facebook and a number of other services did not delete or untimely removed calls for minors to participate in unauthorized protests. The amount of fines against companies by November 18, 2021 is about 200 million rubles. In October 2021, Roskomnadzor announced that more than 427,000 materials with prohibited content were blocked on social networks from January to September 2021.

Earlier in 2021, the former press secretary of Roskomnadzor Vadim Ampelonsky spoke about the details of blocking the Telegram messenger in Russia. In particular, he calculated how much money his creator Pavel Durov spent to save the messenger from disconnection.

According to Ampelonsky, Telegram initially used eight thousand IP addresses. By the beginning of the blocking, their number had grown to 15.5 million. According to the estimates of the former press secretary of Roskomnadzor, the increase in IP addresses for Telegram cost Durov about $75 thousand per hour.

At the end of September 2021, Pavel Durov explained that Telegram had removed the Smart Voting bot due to pressure on the messenger from Apple and Google and the need to comply with local laws. Durov noted that in case of disobedience to the requirement, Roskomnadzor would simply start blocking the web version of Telegram using TSPU from Russian providers, and the messenger could not do anything about it.^[8]

A fine of 4 million rubles for refusing to remove content prohibited in the Russian Federation

On November 8, 2021, the magistrate of the judicial district No. 422 of the Tagansky district issued a decision to impose a fine on Telegram in the amount of 4 million rubles for refusing to remove content that is prohibited by Russian law. Thus, the total amount of requirements for the messenger reached 39 million rubles.

Telegram was found guilty under Article 13.41 of the Administrative Code of the Russian Federation ("Failure by the owner of an information resource on the Internet of information, if the obligation to remove it is provided for by the legislation of the Russian Federation").

On November 1, 2021, Roskomnadzor announced that Facebook, Twitter, Telegram, Google, TikTok, Odnoklassniki and VKontakte have been fined 187 million rubles since the beginning of the year for non-deletion of prohibited information.

As a result of the joint activities of Roskomnadzor MINISTRY OF INTERNAL AFFAIRS Russia and in 2020-2021, 84,569 sites and their separate pages with propaganda of drug use were added to the Unified Register of Prohibited Information, of which 4179 were pages of users and Telegram channels, as well as 10,498 special sites.

The protocols regarding Telegram were drawn up in connection with the failure to delete information that involved teenagers in participating in unauthorized mass events, as well as other content prohibited by Russian law.

The next meeting on the case related to the unwillingness to remove prohibited content in Telegram is scheduled for November 18, 2021. The company faces a punishment in the amount of 800 thousand to 4 million rubles. For repeated violation, a revolving fine is established from 1/10 to 1/5 of annual revenue under Part 5 of Art. 13.41 of the Administrative Code. Roskomnadzor has repeatedly warned that it could impose negotiable fines on Telegram, Facebook and Twitter. The new fine can range from 5% to 10% of annual revenue, its exact amount will be determined by the court.^[9]

The introduction of criminal liability to subscribers of extremist Telegram channels in Belarus

Subscribers of extremist Telegram channels in Belarus face criminal liability. This was announced in mid-October 2021 by the Main Directorate of the Republic for the Fight against Organized Crime (GUBOP) in its Telegram channel. Read more here.

Fine of 9 million for non-deletion of illegal information

On September 14, 2021, the Tagansky Court of Moscow fined Twitter and Telegram 5 million and 9 million rubles, respectively, for failure to comply with orders to remove content banned in Russia. Read more here.

A fine of 11 million rubles for refusing to remove content prohibited in Russia

On July 22, 2021, the Tagansky District Court of Moscow fined Telegram 11 million rubles for refusing to remove content prohibited by Russian law. The total amount of fines issued to the messenger in recent months amounted to 26 million rubles.

Fines in the amount of 5, 4 and 2 million rubles in relation to Telegram were issued under three similar protocols. The company was found guilty of committing an administrative offense under Part Two of Article 13.41 (Failure by the owner of the site or the owner of an information resource in the information and telecommunication network "Internet" of information or an Internet page if the obligation to remove such information is provided for by the legislation of the Russian Federation). The decision was made by the magistrate of the judicial district No. 422. Telegram Messenger, RIA Novosti reports with reference to the press secretary of the Tagansky District Court Zulfiya Gurinchuk.

The decisions do not say which posts are in question. Previously, such decisions are made by the court for publications in which people were agitated to go to uncoordinated protests.

According to the agency, according to the legislation in force by July 2021, if the Internet platform, after notification from the department, has not limited access to prohibited information, then it can be punished in the amount of 800 thousand to 4 million rubles. In case of repeated violation, the penalty is increased to one tenth of the total amount of annual revenue.

Measures for refusing to erase information with calls for extremism, child pornography and methods of making drugs are more serious: up to eight million rubles. For repeated refusal to remove such content - up to one fifth of the total amount of the company's annual revenue.^[10]

Moscow court  fined Telegram 10 million rubles

On June 10, 2021, the Tagansky District  Court of Moscow fined Telegram 10 million rubles in four administrative cases, in which the messenger was accused of refusing to remove prohibited content.

According to the press service of the court, in two cases, fines amounted to 2 million rubles and in two more - 3 million rubles. All cases were initiated under Part 2 of Art. 13.41  CoAPRossia (Violation of the procedure for restricting access to information). At the same time, it is not specified what content we are talking about.

In addition to Telegram, the Tagansky District Court of Moscow fined Facebook under the same article. In relation to the world's largest social network, four protocols were drawn up (for two - a fine of 5 million rubles each, for the remaining two - 3 and 4 million rubles each). Thus, Facebook will have to pay 17 million rubles for refusing to remove content prohibited by Russian law. What materials appeared in administrative cases against Facebook is also not reported.

According to Roskomnadzor, in social networks with calls for participation in illegal actions, more than 2.5 thousand materials were revealed in January and February 2021. This violation entails a fine for legal entities from 800 thousand to 4 million rubles. In the event of a second offense, the amount of the fine will be increased to one tenth of the total amount of the company's annual revenue.^[11]

By mid-May 2021, 563 out of 5.9 thousand identified materials with child pornography, narcotic and suicidal content, calls for children to participate in uncoordinated actions, as well as extremist and other materials prohibited in the country, remained unreported, the department said without specifying the volume of materials stored in Telegram.

The head of Roskomnadzor, Andrei Lipov, previously told Kommersant that the department does not have an installation to block the work of foreign and domestic social networks and other Internet platforms.

Moscow court fined Telegram 5 million rubles

The Moscow court fined Telegram 5 million rubles. This became known on May 12, 2021.

The administration of the service refused to delete information on the order of Roskomnadzor, on the holding of January rallies in support of Alexei Navalny.

At the same time, Telegram faces four more fines in the amount of up to 16 million rubles. The magistrate's court of the Tagansky district received four protocols on an administrative offense against ^[12] messenger^[13]

$150 million investment from RDIF and two funds from the UAE

In March 2021, Telegram raised $150 million in investments from two funds from the UAE. Mubadala Investment Company and Abu Dhabi Catalyst Partners invested in the messenger. The Russian Direct Investment Fund also invested money in Telegram along with Arab funds. Earlier in February, the founder of the service, Pavel Durov, personally met with the Crown Prince of Dubai.

Telegram raised $1 billion at 7%

The Telegram group in March 2021 for the first time placed its own bonds and raised about $1 billion on the market.

Telegram raised $1 billion at 7%, the minimum lot for participation was $500 thousand.

Bonds are placed until 2026, the first payment of the coupon is scheduled for September 2021.

$1 billion bond offering plan to give back to TON investors

In February 2021, it became known that Telegram Group Inc., plans to raise at least $1 billion through the placement of bonds among a limited number of investors from Russia, Europe, Asia and the Middle East.

If Telegram decides on an IPO within five years, bondholders will be able to convert debt into shares at a discount of 10% to the offering price.

Money is needed for development and to return funds to investors in the TON blockchain platform, which was never launched.

2020

The European Commission has included VKontakte and Telegram in the list of pirated resources

In mid-December 2020, the European Commission published an updated list of pirated sites - the "Watch List for Counterfeit and Piracy." For the first time, it included the Telegram messenger and the VKontakte social network. Read more here.

Telegram filed a complaint against Apple

On July 30, 2020, it became known that the Telegram messenger filed an official antimonopoly complaint with the European Commission against Apple over possible violations of competition rules in the App Store.

The corresponding document was sent to the head of the competition department of the European Commission Margrethe Vestager. The complaint states that Apple should allow owners of its devices to download software not only from the App Store, but also from other sources. As an example, Telegram cited the situation in 2016, when the messenger was forced to abandon the launch of the gaming platform due to violations of the App Store rules. For the same reason, Apple may allow a 30% fee on all app turnover in the App Store, including in-app sales and premium services, the document says. Telegram believes that Apple should "allow users to be able to download software not only from the App Store."

Even before Telegram, Spotify and Rakuten also complained that Apple takes 30% of revenue from the sale of all applications in the App Store.

In June 2020, Executive Vice President of the European Commission Margrethe Vestager announced two antitrust investigations against Apple, one of them related to the App Store, the other to Apple Pay. Earlier, Telegram creator Pavel Durov criticized Apple, accusing the company of abusing market powers and "destroying" startups. The developer argued that Apple does not invest in creating third-party applications on its platform, while it is guaranteed to receive 30% of their turnover.

Earlier, Telegram founder Pavel Durov criticized Apple for cheating the price and censorship. According to him, the commission in the App Store overestimates the cost of applications by 30%, and Apple Corporation, which owns the store, reduces the privacy of user data and increases Telegram advertising by^[14].

The creator of the Telegram channel in Russia was detained for extorting 800 thousand rubles from an official

On February 13, 2020, it became known about the detention of blogger Dmitry Sviridov on suspicion of extorting money from a representative of the administration of the city of Korolev near Moscow. According to the REN TV channel, Sviridov was detained in a Moscow cafe as part of an operational-search event. Read more here.

2019

Telegram audience by country and region of Russia

At the beginning of 2019, most Telegram users live in Iran, Malaysia and Uzbekistan.

Supreme Court rejects Telegram cassation appeal

On February 1, 2019, it became known that the Supreme Court rejected Telegram's cassation appeal in the case of blocking the messenger in Russia.

Roskomnadzor began blocking Telegram due to the fact that the company refused to fulfill the requirement to transfer keys to the FSB to decrypt user messages. The decision was supported by the appellate instance. The Presidium of the Moscow City Court also rejected the cassation appeal of Telegram lawyers.

The messenger's lawyers appealed all the decisions of the Russian courts regarding Telegram to the European Court of Human Rights.

The founder of Telegram, Pavel Durov, said that he did not plan to transfer the information requested by law enforcement agencies, and also emphasized that it was technically impossible to provide the keys for decoding the message^[15].

Durov's statement on the liquidation of the company

On January 11, 2019, it became known that Pavel Durov he decided to liquidate Telegram Messenger LLP, which acts as the main legal entity for the same name, and submitted messenger an application to the British the competent authorities. According to a statement dated December 19, 2018, Durov asks to exclude Telegram Messenger LLP from the state register of legal entities Great Britain and stop its registration.

In accordance Russian with the legislation, ARIs are obliged to provide their own, data To Roskomnadzor as well as transfer keys at the enciphering request of special services. The company fulfilled the first requirement, although not immediately, and considered the second technically impossible.

Durov does not report what the liquidation of Telegram Messenger LLP is connected with, but it is unlikely that the reason is to block the messenger on the territory of the Russian Federation. Most likely, this step is related to cryptocurrency, experts say^[16].

2018

Telegram promised to issue numbers and IP addresses of terrorists

As it became known on August 28, 2018, Telegram published an updated privacy policy on its official website, according to which the messenger administration undertakes to issue information about users to law enforcement agencies if requested.

As follows from paragraph 8.3 of the updated policy, Telegram can issue a person's IP address and phone number, but only if there is an appropriate court decision proving the user's involvement in terrorist activities.

If Telegram receives a court decision confirming that you are suspected of terrorist activities, we can disclose your IP address and phone number to the relevant authorities. So far, this has never happened. When this does happen, we will include this fact in the semi-annual transparency report, - spelled out in the updated rules.

Telegram intends to issue a transparency report every six months, which, presumably, will record cases of disclosure of user data.^[17]

Cancellation of ICO plans

The Telegram messenger canceled plans in May 2018 to publicly sell tokens, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing a source closely familiar with the situation. The reason for this decision was that Telegram raised enough funds at the stage of selling tokens to private investors, so it does not need investments from a wider range of people, Telegram writes^[18].

In total, the sale of tokens to private structures brought Telegram $1.7 billion, while the number of investors did not reach 200. The funds were raised over two rounds, which were held in February and March, respectively. The money will be spent on creating a new digital payment platform Telegram Open Network (TON), intended for a wide audience, reports the Wall Street Journal.

At the same time, Bloomberg connects the cancellation of the public offer of tokens with the growing interest of supervisory authorities in investments of this type. A public proposal would make Telegram more vulnerable to various measures by regulators such as the US Securities Commission, according to expert Spencer Bogart, a partner at Blockchain Capital, interviewed by Bloomberg.

Court rules to immediately block Telegram in Russia

On April 13, 2018, the Tagansky District Court of Moscow decided to restrict access to the Telegram service in Russia. This was stated by Judge Yulia Smolina, referring RBC from the meeting^[19] to ^[20] in ^[21].

The court also granted the petition of Roskomnadzor for the immediate entry into force of the decision to block the messenger. Now Roskomnadzor must send a court decision to telecom operators indicating the need to take measures to restrict access to the service. The domain names of telegram.org, web.telegram.org, t.me and IP addresses of Telegram servers can be entered in the registry of blocked pages. After that, providers will have to restrict access to messenger resources within 24 hours from the moment the registry is updated (updated daily at 09:00 and 21:00 Moscow time).

Telegram founder Pavel Durov called on users to calm and, in fact, recognized the blocking as meaningless.

"The pressure

that local authorities put on IT corporations is based on money. At any time, the government could devalue its shares, threatening to block revenue streams from its markets and forcing those companies to do strange things (remember when Apple moved iCloud servers to China last year). On Telegram, we have the luxury of not caring about revenue streams or ad sales. Privacy is not for sale and human rights should not be compromised out of fear or greed, "Pavel Durov said.

Telegram has already begun to distribute instructions for bypassing locks. The most important difficulty on the messenger's path to people may be attempts by Roskomnadzor to convince holders of digital stores and servers to remove the Telegram application or stop its cloud service.

Roskomnadzor gave Telegram 15 days to transfer FSB encryption keys

On March 20, 2018, Roskomnadzor sent a notification to the Telegram messenger about the need to transfer information to the FSB to decode received, transmitted, delivered and processed electronic messages. This is stated in the message^[22] of^[23].

According to the law, the requirement is given 15 days from the date of receipt of the notification.

The representative of Roskomnadzor explained to RBC that in case of failure to fulfill the obligations provided for in Art. 10.1 149-FZ, the service will send a statement of claim to the court demanding that Telegram Messenger Limited restrict access to Internet resources in Russia.

$10 million from the founder of Wimm-Bill-Dunn and $17 million from the director of QIWI

One of the founders of Wimm-Bill-Dann and a member of the board bureau of the Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs David Yakobashvili invested Pavel Durov in Telegram during a closed pre-ICO held in January, Yakobashvili himself told RBC. "Yes, I invested $10 million of my personal funds in Telegram in January. Perhaps I will participate in the ICO Telegram, which will be held in March, has not yet decided. The company is interesting, developing, their team is good, so I decided to invest, "he said.

Another Russian Telegram investor was the founder and CEO of QIWIolonin Sergey - the amount of his investments amounted to $17 million. "In the next round, ICO plans to make investments in the amount of up to $10 million," Solonin said.

ICO plans

In January 2018, Bloomberg reported that Telegram was preparing an ICO. Its first part will be closed and will take place in February 2018. During it, it is planned to sell tokens worth $600 million. Further, in March 2018, the second part of the placement should take place, this time public and also in the amount of $600 million^[24].

Thus, Telegram wants to raise $1.2 billion in total. Investors who take part in the offering will be able to use the tokens after they are traded on currency exchanges. This should happen in 2019. Having bought tokens during the closed part of the ICO, the investor will not be able to sell it within 18 months after the start of public trading in them.

The largest investors in Silicon Valley intend to invest in the initial coin offer (ICO), which is going to be held by the Telegram messenger, according to the Financial Times. In particular, venture capital firms Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, Benchmark and Sequoia Capital are going to invest $20 million each in this ICO, the publication writes, citing sources familiar with the situation.

These firms are known for financing the largest technology companies, including, Google,, Amazon, and Apple Twitter Instagram others. Their interest in Telegram ICO confirms the fear of the largest technology financiers that promising startups are starting to outstrip traditional capital, the Financial Times notes.

According to a document distributed by Telegram, and a copy of which the publication has, the company plans to build a virtual economy where "the number of users can become large enough to push cryptocurrencies to widespread implementation." The publication calls the ICO Telegram "excessive" and "contradictory." Blockchain experts he interviewed doubt that Telegram can justify its ambitions, and are skeptical of the company's motives, raising funds with a clear shortage of other sources of income.

Telegram will create its own cryptocurrency and blockchain platform

The Telegram messenger plans to launch its own blockchain platform and its own cryptocurrency. The third generation blockchain platform should be called the Telegram Open Network, in turn, the cryptocurrency will be called Gram.

Main article: TON Telegram Open Network Blockchain platform

2017

Telegram lawyers appealed to the UN for protection from the actions of the FSB

Agora's lawyers, who represent Telegram's interests, appealed to the UN for support in a dispute with the Russian authorities over the disclosure of encryption keys for correspondence. Member of the association Damir Gainutdinov sent a corresponding letter to the UN Special Rapporteur on the right to freedom of speech David Kaye^[25] appealed^[26].

The letter says^[27]that Telegram in Russia was fined for refusing to transfer encryption keys to the FSB. Therefore, Agora asks Kaye to recommend to the Russian government "to refrain from expanding the practice of arbitrary interference in the right of citizens to freedom of expression, privacy and anonymity, including online."

Now the Russian authorities have a formal reason to block Telegram, as it violated the new requirements of the law "On Information" regarding instant messengers. According to lawyers, this contradicts the resolution of the UN General Assembly "The right to privacy in the digital era."

Agora also recalled that the encryption principle in Telegram does not allow messenger administrators to access the keys that are generated on users' devices. Gainutdinov compared the Telegram case to a lawsuit between the FBI and Apple when an American company refused to create a program to hack an iPhone.

The court upheld the fine

The Meshchansky Court of Moscow upheld the fine of 800 thousand rubles imposed on the Telegram messenger for refusing to transfer the keys to user correspondence to the FSB.

"To refuse the

complaint of representatives of Telegram Messenger LLP, to recognize the decision of the magistrate as legal," the judge announced the decision.

Durov on the Telegram fine for 800 thousand rubles

Durov is ready to close Telegram in Russia and Iran

The founder of the Telegram messenger and the VKontakte social network Pavel Durov announced his readiness to break both personal and business ties with countries in which he and his business are under pressure. In his Telegram channel, Durov answered numerous user questions regarding the charges brought in Russia and Iran. According to Durov, protecting user privacy is still one of the priorities of the messenger development team, and if the governments of any countries are going to put pressure on him personally and on Telegram in particular, then he is ready to close the service in these countries, depriving them of such an opportunity.

FSB requires decoding keys

On September 27, it became known that the FSB in July demanded that Telegram provide them with keys to decode user messages. The service had an obligation to provide keys when it registered in the register of information distributors.

Pavel Durov agreed to enter Telegram into the register of Roskomnadzor

Durov quoted the head of Roskomnadzor, Alexander Zharov, as saying that "there is no question that there will be access to user correspondence," and all the supervisory authority expects is the provision of information about Telegram.

"Registration data about the Telegram publishing company is no secret and is available to anyone in open sources," Durov wrote and gave a link by which they can be viewed.

The head of Roskomnadzor appeals to Pavel Durov

The heads of Roskomnadzor Alexander Zharov personally contact the founder of the Telegram messenger Pavel Durov with a demand to include the messenger in the register of information dissemination organizers (ARI). Zharov announced this in June 2017 to the Interfax agency.

The head of Roskomnadzor added that his department is waiting for a response from Telegram about the provision of information necessary to include the service in the ARI register. There is no answer yet, in connection with which Zharov intends to contact Durov directly within a week^{[28] [29]}

Durov responded to the appeal, calling the possible blocking "sabotage of state interests." "As soon as Telegram is blocked, the correspondence of Russian officials, their communication with friends and relatives and other sensitive data WhatsAppViber through/will go to the American-controlled Apple Google iCloud/Drive clouds," he wrote.

Telegram refused to cooperate with any special services

Requests for information about users from governments of different countries and special services will be ignored by the administration of the Telegram messenger. "Yet

no government or intelligence agency in the world has received a bit of information from us. This will always be the case, "the service developers say. Speaking about data protection, the Telegram administration stressed that all information in both secret and cloud chats is encrypted and will not be easy to hack. "The keys required to decrypt the data are divided into several parts and are physically stored in several other data centers. At the same time, all data centers are located in different jurisdictions, so in order to force Telegram to issue any data, an unrealistic level of cooperation between several states will be required, "the developers note

.

Such a statement was caused by the fact that in May 2017 Roskomnadzor he sent a letter to Telegram demanding that the data be submitted to the register of information dissemination organizers. In particular, the information should contain a full and abbreviated (if any) name, country of registration, tax ID and/or ID in the trade register of the country of registration, location address, postal address, email address, domain name, email address of the resource administrator, provider hosting and description of the service (product) provided by the service. In case of refusal of assistance messenger , it can be blocked in the territory. Russia

Telegram administration ignores Europol requests

The management of the Telegram messenger refuses to provide information at the request of Europol. This was announced in May 2017 by the head of the European Police Agency Rob Wainwright.

Director of the European Police Agency Rob Wainwright expressed regret at the ignorance by the administration of the Telegram messenger of proposals for cooperation. According to him, despite the fact that contacts are established, but "this is not at all what we get from Facebook, Twitter and a number of others." He is also of the opinion that such a lack of interaction creates the greatest problems. Wainwright noted: "There is an opinion on Telegram that the application should be free and not cooperate with law enforcement agencies. This is the opinion of the CEO. They evade requests to a certain extent. I can't say they flatly refuse (to answer). But we have not yet had the opportunity to establish (with the messenger) the same constructive relations as with Facebook and Twitter^[30]

Notes