WarnerMedia halts all new business operations In Russia
Mar 09, 2022
Washington [US], March 10 : WarnerMedia's CEO Jason Kilar has announced on Wednesday that amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the entertainment conglomerate will be "pausing all new business in Russia".
According to Variety, in a memo to WarnerMedia staff, Kilar said, "I want to share with each of you a number of decisions we have made with regard to WarnerMedia's business operations in Russia."
"Following the Russian invasion of Ukraine, WarnerMedia is pausing all new business in Russia. This includes ceasing broadcast of our channels, halting all new content licensing with Russian entities and pausing our planned theatrical and games releases," he continued.
Previously, along with suspending CNN broadcasts in Russia, WarnerMedia's Warner Bros had halted its plans to release 'The Batman' in the country ahead of its planned premiere.
Kilar further stated, "We are following this situation closely and future business decisions will be made with that context in mind. Our thoughts in this moment are with the people of Ukraine."
This announcement from WarnerMedia comes a few hours after Discovery, Inc., which is set to soon close its acquisition of WarnerMedia, suspended all operations in Russia amid the country's war on Ukraine.
As per Deadline, Universal Music has also just announced it ceased operations there, along with McDonald's, Coca-Cola and others. Amazon will be shutting off Amazon Prime in Russia and stopping deliveries to the country.