Dmitry Medvedev Calls on Russians to Illegally Download and Share Western Films

Deputy Chairman of the Security Council of the Russian Federation, Dmitry Medvedev, has urged the public to pirate and share Western films and music. He made this statement during an interview with Russian media and users on VKontakte.

“Look for the right pirates and download from them. Right now, I see this as a principle of ‘you got what you wanted,’” Medvedev stated.

He added that he previously held a negative view towards downloading pirated copies of foreign films and music, but now supports this method. “If Netflix is inaccessible to us, then we will all download and use it for free. I would also spread it across the network to cause them maximum damage, making them go bankrupt,” Medvedev summarized.

Last October, the State Duma proposed the establishment of an agency for the sale of pirated films. According to the authors of this initiative, users would pay not to copyright holders or pirates, but to the state, while businesses would operate in a ‘legal space.’