📊 State Billions Reshape Russia's TV Series Industry
Subsidies from the Internet Development Institute (IRI) have evolved from supplementary funding into a primary strategic driver for domestic digital content. This is the conclusion reached by analysts at BK Media following a comprehensive review of the agency's performance over the past two and a half years.
The scale of operations is reflected in the latest round of grant allocations: on July 29, IRI announced the winners of its regional project competition, awarding over 150 million rubles across 56 titles from 40 Russian regions. Just a month prior, 21.8 billion rubles in subsidies spanning the next three years were distributed among 152 national projects, including 65 series.
State funding for IRI has seen explosive growth. While the institute allocated 3 billion rubles in 2020, its annual budget surpassed 25.9 billion rubles for 2025–2026—more than an eightfold increase over five years.
By comparison, the Ministry of Culture’s total film production budget for 2026 stands at 4.24 billion rubles, while Cinema Fund subsidies are capped at 11.85 billion rubles. Consequently, IRI’s aggregate budget is more than double that of the Cinema Fund, solidifying its position as the largest buyer in the country’s media market. Rather than fully funding projects, IRI typically covers 30% to 70% of production budgets alongside up to 20% of marketing costs.
Joint releases between IRI and leading domestic streaming platforms over recent seasons demonstrate record digital reach:
- The Last Warrior: Heritage (Start): The undisputed leader of the 2024–2025 season, accumulating 56.9 million views over the year and topping TelecomDaily’s popularity surveys with 26.5% of total viewership.
- Lily of the Valley: Such Tender Love (Wink): Exceeded 200 million views by February 2026, with tracks from its soundtrack dominating national music charts.
- Plevako (Premier/Ivi), Prince Andrey (Smotrim/Kinopoisk), and Curious Barbara: Recorded exceptionally high completion rates while consistently maintaining top spots on platform charts throughout 2025 and 2026.
Despite these successes, industry experts highlight mounting challenges. Driven by talent shortages—specifically a scarcity of screenwriters and directors—and high production inflation, IRI’s relative share in big-budget titles is shrinking, forcing commercial platforms to commit a larger share of equity.
Alexey Byrdin, CEO of the Internet Video Association, and Denis Kuskov, head of TelecomDaily, anticipate that tighter federal budgets will lead IRI to take a more conservative financial stance. The institute is likely to pivot away from commercial blockbusters toward targeted support for niche, educational, and culturally significant projects that fulfill a distinct social mission.
Additionally, the industry is looking to IRI for broader institutional support, including investments in film education, promotion for mid-tier releases, and the integration of neural network technologies—building on its recently launched AI content competition.
Source: Kinometro
