Unofficial voice acting studios earned 94 million rubles.
More than 40 of the largest unofficial studios of voice acting last year earned more than 94 million rubles. Most of the income was brought by translations of popular foreign films and series, as well as sponsorship. Market participants note that advertising in the issues of such studios is relatively inexpensive and provides wide audience coverage. And their services have formed sustainable demand, especially among companies engaged in the voice acting of illegal Western content.
Last year, 48 of the largest unofficial studios of the video content of video content, whose translations also use pirate services, earned at least 53% more than a year earlier-more than 94 million rubles, calculated in F6 (previously Group-IB).
In the spring of 2022, many foreign streaming platforms left Russia, including Netflix, Universal, Disney. Other Hollywood studios suspended work in the country and began to recall licenses for showing films, which led to the influx of users for pirate video services. A year later, Russian legal video services – Rutube and VK Video – were faced with mass unloading by users of pirate content.
Translation and adaptation of video content in Russia
In general, after the departure of the meaggers in the person of Disney, Warner Bros., Universal Pictures, Sony Dubbing Studios collided with a crisis and were even forced to reduce expenses. Among them is one of the oldest and largest companies Nevafilm, which cut out the expenses of 90%, Mosfilm Master. Some of the market participants were reoriented to work with translations into foreign languages for domestic film companies, such as Rufilms. They continued to engage in dubbing and the translation of subtitles for Russian -speaking spectators outside the Russian Federation.
Russian films over the past year raised $ 16.6 million against $ 17.6 million in a foreign box office in 2023 (See “Kommersant” from January 29). The key market for export was China. According to the service for the search for vacancies “Gorodnetyti.ru”, the average salary of the actor of the voice acting last year amounted to 49.4 thousand rubles. A year earlier, this indicator was at 27.7 thousand rubles.
The company’s analysts identify four methods of earning for unofficial voice acting studios. This is a sponsorship subscription, donates, as well as income from advertising inserts or collections for voice acting and from advertising on the studios and in players. The design of paid subscriptions brought to studios for a period of 45.4% of the total amount of earnings along with the total increase in the number of subscribers by almost double. Revenues from advertising inserts or voices for voice acting (32.2%) of popular films and TV shows last year doubled, and the number of adapted paintings is six times, they note in F6: “The inserts themselves can be in an audio format – sound reproduction of an advertising message, as well as in the form of a video station, when logos, banners appear on the screen, banners, banners. Video clips « .
The revenue from advertising on its own sites of studios and in players took only 15.4% in the total volume of financial income of companies. “The share of profit from this method of monetization is reduced due to an increase in the popularity of alternative ways to view content, for example, in social networks, video hosting and instant messengers,” the F6 believes. In general, the interest of users in pirate resources was significantly reduced: in 2025, only 50.8% were per three leaders of the illegal market (See “Kommersant” from March 25). The share of the donates in the structure of income has also decreased-up to 7%-due to the spread of paid subscriptions.
Most of the revenue to the studios brought translations of foreign films and series, world releases without reference to the country and topics – 40.8%, appreciated in F6.
In second place are the drama (television series of Southeast Asia; 37.1%), followed by anime (13.7%). But the Turkish series in the income of translators occupied only 8.4%. Advertising in the releases of these studios is relatively inexpensive and provides a wide coverage of the audience, says Stanislav Goncharov, head of the Digital Risk Protection Department: “At the same time, the development of the alternative translation market simultaneously strengthens the position of pirate resources in the struggle for the audience that wants to watch the film earlier than the official release.”
The average cost of 1 thousand shows on pirate resources in 2024 amounted to $ 3.12 (300 rubles), noted in J’Son & Partners Consulting. For example, Link sells 1 thousand in-stream shows (advertising is integrated into a video player) for 280–360 rubles. Moreover, for pharmacists, the rate can reach 500-600 rubles. But there are cheaper options: Out-Stream banners and video formats (posted on the site, outside the video player)-about 100 rubles. In Lordfilm, Lostfilm, Zona and Hdrezka did not answer Kommersant.
The growth of studios revenue could be much higher, said Dmitry Kolesov, director of the J’Son & Partners Department of New Technologies: “I suppose 50% is a limiter solely because of the lack of people working on translation and voice acting.” Now the studios services are in great demand, especially those involved in the voice acting of illegal Western content. As an example, Mr. Kolesov gives events in Kazakhstan last year: after the adoption of amendments in the country on a mandatory broadcast of 60% broadcasting of ether television channels and 10% paid in the national language, and not in Russian, local studios increased prices for their services by half.
