Zetflix — Russia fights back
In the face of sanctions and restrictions.
A couple of weeks ago, my Russian classmates were laughing at me and my friend ( who’s also a foreigner) when they found out that we had Netfix subscriptions. Apparently no one else had one and they all used a ‘knock-off’ version called Zetflix.
They have the latest releases, in Russian and it’s free. So why the hell were we paying a monthly fee?
It sounded ridiculous, but weeks and a million sanctions later, they’re still laughing as we have lost our beloved Netflix. But in a weird turn, the shady site has come through for Russians in a similar situation.
Cue the rise of Russian knock-offs.
Having long lived in the shadow of international media and brands, they finally have their time in the light, and shine they shall!
At this point, it is a bit sketchy trying to figure out who to point to: the government or the companies themselves. Terror from both sides. For example, Instagram has been down due to ‘fake news’ but we can still access it using VPN’s. While other things are just unavailable (Netflix) in this country.
In place of the petitions I was receiving to help stop the war, I have started receiving ‘recommendations’ to switch to Russian apps instead. The more popular VK and the unheard ones “odnoklassiniki”.
The irony is that most people wouldn’t have paid these things a second glance but now in a non-competitive place, they are thriving.
Macdonalds pulling out, brought dwindling Burger King front and center. I know its not a Russian knock-off but as they lose business almost everywhere else, aren’t they though?
Farewell to Apple Pay and Google Pay, introducing Sberpay. They had been trying for months to get us to switch to it without much success. Unionpay and Mir in place of Visa and Mastercard. As a foreigner, I usually enjoy international brands even though they are more expensive but we have had to make the switch. And most of my friends have found themselves in the precarious position of having to save money as there’s nothing to spend it on.
So indeed the show goes on.
Apparently, people will find a way to make anything work when it’s the only choice they have.
Which isn’t to say there have been no negative effects.
People who were already living paycheck to paycheck, losing their jobs. There are limitations on how much food one can buy even though prices have more than doubled. The flying restrictions and isolation. Thousands of Russians, as intended, have been driven onto the streets in protest. Thousands of Russians, unintended, have driven into jails.
Seems like everyone has suffered from these sanctions and restrictions, to varying degrees, except, of course, the person they were originally intended for.
