Russians began to buy WiFi routers due to Internet blockages

Sales of WiFi routers have increased in Russia, their sellers and broadband access operators told Izvestia. Thus, their sales on Wildberries this summer increased by 112% compared to June-July 2024, the marketplace's press service estimated.

"Interestingly, the dynamics of wired routers for home Internet, with sales growth of 134%, significantly outstripped mobile routers (they "grew" by 85%)," the company noted.

Sellers and communications specialists note that the growing demand for routers is associated with increased mobile Internet outages in the regions, which allows both private and corporate users to stay connected during lockouts.

"The situation with periodic restrictions on mobile access has highlighted the competitive advantages of fixed Internet and WiFi, including data transfer speeds and the absence of traffic limits," the Rostelecom press service said.

They also reported a significant increase in the number of applications from business segment customers (especially small and medium-sized enterprises) for fixed Internet connection, including WiFi — in June-July, their number increased 2.2 times compared to the same period last year. Such clients need it to connect their information systems, cash registers and distribute the Internet to visitors, the company said.

Meanwhile, in order to streamline and reduce mass outages, the Ministry of Finance and business are discussing the introduction of rules for disabling mobile Internet, a senior federal official and a top manager of one of the cellular companies previously told Izvestia.

Read more in the exclusive Izvestia article:

Wireless approach: Russians began to buy WiFi routers due to Internet blockages