What is the cost of Instagram filtering and internet outages?
The cost of Instagram filtering and internet outages. According to Iran Gate, the damage that recent internet restrictions have inflicted on various businesses is far beyond what was previously imagined. Studies indicate the wide range of damage that internet outages have caused to different jobs, a damage that has seriously endangered the livelihood and even daily life of the middle and low-income classes of society.
Observations by Iran Gate on reports about the consequences of internet restrictions in Iran reveal an unimaginable extent of damage to society. In the second part of a three-part series of reports, the scope of damage caused by internet outages to businesses active on social networks is examined. Iran Gate has reached figures indicating a disaster unfolding within Iran’s economy, acting like a ticking time bomb.
A quick calculation
Reports from news sources inside Iran about the number of citizens whose livelihoods are tied to virtual businesses are very thought-provoking. According to statements by some officials of the Islamic Republic, the livelihood of at least 10 million Iranian citizens is directly connected to social networks, especially Instagram. In fact, it can be said that the recent internet restrictions and the heavy and widespread filtering of social networks have seriously endangered the livelihood of more than 10 million people in just the past 10 days.
It should be noted that this number was about 5 million in November 2019 when the government adopted a similar policy. In other words, in the last three years, despite the extensive investment by the government in paper-based knowledge-based companies, the result has been nothing but more than a 100% growth in internet businesses only on Instagram.
However, findings by Iran Gate indicate that each hour of internet outage in the country imposes a loss equivalent to 125 billion tomans on the Iranian economy. In fact, it can be said that in the past 10 days, during which the government has restricted users’ access to cyberspace, the Iranian people have suffered a loss of more than 30,000 billion tomans. With a quick calculation, it can be understood that the loss from internet outages in 24 hours is equivalent to 3,000 billion tomans, which over the past 10 days amounts to more than 30,000 billion tomans.
A simple comparison
To better understand the magnitude of the numbers mentioned in the previous section, it is only necessary to multiply the figure of 3,000 billion tomans by the number of days in a year. The resulting number is astonishing because, according to the above calculations, the annual loss from internet outages only in social networks and related businesses exceeds one trillion tomans.
To simplify the subject, it is only necessary to compare this figure with the structural budget deficit of the government in 2022. According to the budget approved by the eleventh parliament, the government of Ebrahim Raisi is facing a structural budget deficit of one trillion tomans in the current year under the best conditions. In other words, the damage caused by internet outages is equal to the entire budget deficit of the government throughout 2022. This simple comparison reveals the dimensions of the disaster that has been orchestrated by policymakers and the Islamic Republic government these days.
Identifying the dimensions of the disaster on Instagram and Telegram
Some domestic sources report about half a million Iranian online stores operating on the popular and famous social network Instagram. However, according to officials of the Supreme Council of Cyberspace, the total number of active businesses on Instagram exceeds two and a half million stores and service pages.
The report from the National Tax Administration also indicates that more than one million Iranian pages on Instagram earn income. The publication of this statistic followed a parliamentary resolution requiring active participants in this field to pay taxes, which also faced reactions from experts at the time.
On the other hand, it is estimated that the number of jobs in online stores active on the Telegram messenger has also exceeded 200,000 jobs despite widespread filtering. This has caused the livelihood of about 3 million Iranian citizens to be directly linked to the continued access of Iranian users to Telegram.
Inflation, continued restrictions, and exponential growth of losses
Although reports from Iran indicate a relative decline in protests, it seems that the Raisi government currently has no intention of lifting the restrictions on internet access and consequently on social networks like Instagram and Telegram.
Experts estimate that, considering the statistics from the Statistical Center on the inflation rate in September 2022, the damage to virtual businesses will grow by more than 30% by the end of the current year and will also result in the loss of more than one million jobs.
This is while Ebrahim Raisi has repeatedly announced the creation of more than 900,000 jobs in just the first year of his government. Although economists consider the claims of the thirteenth president baseless, even if we assume Raisi’s claim is correct, it must be said that the policy of internet outages will only in the next 4 to 5 months pave the way for adding another one of Seyyed’s grand promises to the list of his unrealistic slogans.
- Disaster in Iran’s economy: Internet outages turn economic growth negative, Part 2
- Who benefits from internet outages?
- A 35 trillion toman loss from internet disruption in just one month