According to Rosstat, the volume of communication services provided to enterprises of all types of activities increased by 13.1% in May 2026 compared to May 2025, and decreased by 1.1% compared to April 2026, amounting to 262.9 billion rubles.
This is stated in issue No. 1682 of the monthly bulletin "Branches of the Russian Economy: manufacturing, finance, securities. Communications and Information Technology" dated July 22, 2026.
In January-May 2026, the volume of communication services for enterprises amounted to 1332.1 billion rubles, which is 12.5% more than the same period in 2025. The volume of paid communication services to the population in May 2026 amounted to 169.5 billion rubles, an increase of 6.4% compared to May 2025, and a decrease of 1.5% compared to the previous month. In the first five months of this year, the volume of communication services to the public amounted to 845.2 billion rubles, which is 7.5% higher than last year's figure. According to Rosstat's operational data, tariffs for information and communications services in the Russian Federation for May 2026 for legal entities increased by 1.2% compared to the same period in 2025, and remained unchanged against April 2026.
The volume of software development services in May 2026 amounted to 545.4 billion rubles. This figure increased by 28% compared to May 2025, but decreased by 0.9% compared to the previous month. In January-May, the volume of software development services amounted to 2,819 billion rubles, which is 41% higher than the result of the same period in 2025. The volume of other IT services in May 2026 amounted to 168.5 billion rubles, which is 34.4% higher than in May 2025, and 1.2% higher than in the previous month. In January-May 2026, this figure amounted to 850 billion rubles, which is 29.1% higher than the first five months of 2025. At the same time, the volume of paid IT services to the public in May amounted to 49 billion rubles, which is 14.6% higher than in May 2025 and 0.7% lower than in April 2026. The volume of these services in January-May 2026 — 235.4 billion rubles — was 15.7% higher than the result of the same period in 2025.
On July 13, 2026, the European Union imposed sanctions against the parent company of VK Holding and its subsidiary, Communications Platform LLC, the developer and operator of the national messenger Max. The EU Council stated that the company "cooperated with the Russian authorities, including providing them with user data." On July 16, 2026, VK sold its 100% stake in the domestic RuStore app store to the CEO of the service's developer company. VK also decided to completely abandon the .com domain and complete the transition to the .ru domain.
The State Duma adopted a number of draft laws at its plenary session at the end of June 2026. In particular, the law on ensuring security in the field of computer information and information and communication technologies, the law on the development of artificial intelligence (AI) technologies in Russia and the law on administrative responsibility for violations in the management of an apartment building (MCD) were adopted. In addition, starting from March 1, 2027, the Ministry of Finance plans to introduce mandatory labeling of international calls, and the government has ordered Russian civil servants to fully transfer work chats to domestic messengers by 2030.
For a more detailed analysis, see Issue No. 1682 of the monthly bulletin "Branches of the Russian Economy: Manufacturing, Finance, Securities. Communications and Information Technology" dated July 22, 2026. The bulletin contains an overview of the Russian telecommunications and communications market, including mobile and broadband Internet, as well as digital TV and online cinemas; an overview of the Russian legislative framework and its changes affecting the industry; an analysis of the industry's performance; innovative strategies and areas of work of the Big Four operators and providers, including the development of 5G and MVNO, as well as their tariff policy. A brief overview of the stock market and the results of M&A activity are attached to the newsletter. The news of the largest companies in the industry is included.
