The Spring of Russian E-commerce - An exclusive global perspectives series

David Waroquier of Mangrove Capital Partners: “In the coming two years, we expect to see a few major exits in the e-commerce sphere.”

Part of a Global Perspectives Series on Russian e-commerce offered by East-West Digital News / May 21, 2012

A pioneer among foreign investors on the Russian venture scene, David Waroquier of Mangrove Capital Partners is a recognized expert of the local Internet ecosystem and a reference partner for several Russia-based ventures. He shared with East-West Digital News his vision of the fast-growing Russian online retail market, its challenges, and the exit scenarios for investors in this industry.

This interview is an excerpt from an in-depth research paper on Russian e-commerce that will be released soon.

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Siberian local review service Flamp.ru now serves Moscow

By East-West Digital News / May 21, 2012

Flamp.ru, a consumer review website that appeared one year ago in the Siberian cities Novosibirsk and Krasnoyarsk, followed by a launch in Ekaterinburg in the Urals, announced last week it now covers the Russian capital.

Not only do Flamp.ru users review local businesses like cafés, museums and theaters, they can also post comments about banks, charities, and government bodies.

Russian Orthodox Patriarch joins Facebook

By Marchmont News, East-West Digital News / May 18, 2012

Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia, the head of the Russian Orthodox Church, can now be contacted through his official Facebook page.

The page has generated over 3,000 ‘Likes’ three days since it opened on Tuesday, May 15. Visitors can read the Patriarch’s speeches, learn Church-related news, see photos of Kirill and click on shared links. The page will be updated daily.

ABBYY and IBM support computational linguistics in Russian universities

Special to East-West Digital News by Oleg Kouzbit in partnership with Marchmont News / May 18, 2012

The Russian State University for the Humanities (RSUH) and the Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology (MIPT) have each announced the opening of a program in computational linguistics. The two programs were developed in close cooperation with ABBYY and IBM, according to ABBYY, a leading Russia-based international supplier of linguistic and translation software and services set up in 1989 by an MIPT student.

ATM skimming on the rise

By Michael Hartleben, Egorov Puginsky Afanasiev and Partners / May 17, 2012

The number of ATM skimming crimes in Russia shot up ninefold to 362 in Q1 of 2012 compared to only 40 in Q1 of 2011, reports the Russian Europay Members Association (REMA). Such rapid rise in skimming crimes comes somewhat expected as the numbers for Q4 of 2011 (184) were up by 460% already. This information is based on data provided by the REMA’s 20 largest banks, which control approximately 90% of all 184,000 ATMs in Russia.

ATM skimming is a type of fraud, where a victim’s bank card information is electronically recorded while the victim uses an ATM machine. The collected information is then transferred onto a fake bank card, which is either used by the perpetrator or sold on for profit to a third party.

Global software, games and consumer electronics companies target Russia

By East-West Digital News / May 17, 2012

Digital River, a US-based software company, has just released a survey of 250 companies across Asia, Europe, North America and emerging countries – including Brazil and India – which operate in the software, gaming software and consumer electronics sectors and generate annual global revenues of $250 million or more.

Russia came out on top of the list of countries where such companies are seeking to expand internationally in the next two years. Russia was named by 31% of the respondents, followed by Brazil (24%), China (23%), India (22%), Japan (22%), Germany (21%) and the United Kingdom (16%).

Satellite phone operators Iridium and Thuraya come back to Russia

By East-West Digital News / May 17, 2012 / 2 Comments

Iridium Communications, the global satellite communications company, expects to commence operations soon in Russia, after technical tests are completed and acceptance certificate received from the Russian authorities.

“Our interconnect in Russia is built and 95 percent complete, and we’ll soon be pleased to announce our new start in Russia,” Corporate Communications Director Liz DeCastro told East-West Digital News.

Iridium’s predecessor company, Iridium LLC, already operated in Russia in the 1990s before ceasing business around the world due to a bankruptcy.

Government-sponsored cloud platform offers software, infrastructure and development solutions

By Marchmont News, East-West Digital News / May 16, 2012

Rostelecom, the state-owned telecom operator, has completed phase one of “Project 07,” the national cloud computing platform to be fully put together by 2015 as part of the federal Information Society program.

The platform, launched in beta version in March under the o7.com domain name, offers cloud-based software, infrastructure and development platform services (SaaS, IaaS and PaaS, respectively).

Qualcomm could invest “hundreds of millions of dollars” in Russian tech companies

By East-West Digital News / May 15, 2012 / 1 Comment

Qualcomm, a leading US-based international provider of wireless technology and services – with a particular emphasis on chipsets for smartphones – is ready to invest “hundreds of millions of dollars” in Russian tech companies, Senior VP Anastassia Lauterbach told the Russian business daily Kommersant.

According to its strategic plan adopted in late 2011, Qualcomm will pursue four goals in Russia, said Lauterbach: help operators develop their networks; develop an ecosystem of Internet services; make the smartphone more accessible to the population; and invest in technology and science.

Dating site Flirtic.com launches in Russia

By East-West Digital News / May 15, 2012

Flirtic.com, a dating and matchmaking site that began operating in early 2011, chose Russia as its first step to international expansion beyond its native Estonian market.

A beta version of the service is being launched this week to serve users in Moscow, but Flirtic.com has plans to cover St Petersburg, Kiev, and other Russian-speaking cities later this year, explained Andres Susi, the site’s Executive Director, in an exchange with East-West Digital News.

David Waroquier of Mangrove Capital Partners: “In the coming two years, we expect to see a few major exits in the e-commerce sphere.”

Siberian local review service Flamp.ru now serves Moscow

Russian Orthodox Patriarch joins Facebook

ABBYY and IBM support computational linguistics in Russian universities

ATM skimming on the rise

Global software, games and consumer electronics companies target Russia

Satellite phone operators Iridium and Thuraya come back to Russia

Government-sponsored cloud platform offers software, infrastructure and development solutions

Qualcomm could invest “hundreds of millions of dollars” in Russian tech companies

Dating site Flirtic.com launches in Russia

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The Spring of Russian E-Commerce: An Exclusive Global Perspectives Series

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