Russia Fines Apple and Zoom for Alleged Data Storage Violation

In this Saturday, March 14, 2020, file photo, an Apple logo adorns the facade of the downtown Brooklyn Apple store in New York. (AP)
In this Saturday, March 14, 2020, file photo, an Apple logo adorns the facade of the downtown Brooklyn Apple store in New York. (AP)
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Russia Fines Apple and Zoom for Alleged Data Storage Violation

In this Saturday, March 14, 2020, file photo, an Apple logo adorns the facade of the downtown Brooklyn Apple store in New York. (AP)
In this Saturday, March 14, 2020, file photo, an Apple logo adorns the facade of the downtown Brooklyn Apple store in New York. (AP)

US tech giant Apple and Zoom Video Communications were fined on Tuesday for allegedly refusing to store the data of Russian citizens on Russian territory.

Moscow has clashed with Big Tech over content, censorship, data and local representation in a simmering dispute that has erupted into a full-on battle since Russia sent its armed forces into Ukraine on Feb. 24.

Apple was fined 2 million roubles ($34,000), the court in Moscow's Tagansky district said, with Zoom and Ookla, which runs the internet performance tool Speedtest, fined 1 million roubles each.

Alphabet's Google was ordered to pay 60,000 roubles for a different offence relating to data.

Apple, Zoom, Ookla and Google did not immediately respond to requests for comment.



Nvidia’s Market Value Tops $4 Trillion

Nvidia logo is seen in this illustration created on January 27, 2025. (Reuters)
Nvidia logo is seen in this illustration created on January 27, 2025. (Reuters)
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Nvidia’s Market Value Tops $4 Trillion

Nvidia logo is seen in this illustration created on January 27, 2025. (Reuters)
Nvidia logo is seen in this illustration created on January 27, 2025. (Reuters)

Nvidia's stock market value ended the trading session above $4 trillion for the first time on Thursday, solidifying the chipmaker's position as Wall Street's central player in a race to dominate AI technology.

Shares of Nvidia ended up 0.75% at $164.10, giving it a market value of $4.004 trillion and extending its lead over Apple and Microsoft as it benefits from a surge in demand for artificial-intelligence technologies.

Nvidia's stock market value briefly peaked above $4 trillion on Wednesday before closing at about $3.97 trillion. It is worth more than the combined value of all publicly listed companies in the UK.

Nvidia's high-end processors are at the center of a race between Microsoft, Amazon, Alphabet, Meta Platforms and other Wall Street heavyweights to build AI data centers and dominate the emerging technology.

Nvidia is also exposed to conflict between Washington and Beijing over trade, including restrictions on exports to China of its most powerful chips.

"Trade tensions and tariffs are a risk, as is competition. Greater AI adoption could shift part of the demand toward cheaper alternatives," Swissquote Bank senior analyst Ipek Ozkardeskaya wrote in a client note.

Nvidia achieved a $1 trillion market value for the first time in June 2023 and tripled it in about a year, faster than Apple and Microsoft, the only other US firms with market values above $3 trillion.

Microsoft is the second most valuable US company, with a market capitalization of $3.73 trillion. Its shares dipped 0.4% on Thursday.

Apple's stock has tumbled 15% so far in 2025, leaving its market value at $3.17 trillion, reflecting investor worries that the iPhone maker has been slow to introduce AI into its products and services.

Even after its meteoric rally, Nvidia's stock is valued at about 33 times expected earnings, below its five-year average of 41, according to LSEG.