Page 120 - RusRPTNov20

According to the paper, RAEK suggests expanding the scope of the companies eligible to all major internet services (so called “digital frame”), including search, social networks, e-commerce, online cinemas, etc. Reportedly, RAEK also suggested additional measures including to ease requirements to consider software Russian (in terms of foreign ownership), cut VAT and delay implementation of the law for mandatory pre-installation of Russian apps on devices (to 2022). Yandex and Mail.ru did not comment to RBC; classified Avito and online cinema ivi support the suggestions.
Chinese Internet holding Alibaba Group has agreed to launch its cloud platform Alibaba Cloud in Russia through partnership with Moscow data center IXcellerate for its own needs ​and for other Chinese customers in the country later on, business daily Kommersant reported on Tuesday, quoting IT sources. Alibaba Group registered firm Alibaba Cloud (Ru) in November 2019 and received the necessary licenses in September. One of the sources said the Chinese group occupied more than a half of capacities of the Moscow data center, which hosts almost 1,500 racks. Another source said that Alibaba needs the platform to support fast-growing businesses in the region, like AliExpress Russia and its logistics partner Cainiao Network. Alibaba Group is the largest cloud provider in China with 56 points of presence in 19 regions of the world. It services the own e-commerce system, as well as storage and processing of data of third-party customers.
Russia's largest bank state-controlled ​Sberbank​ and the R-Farm group will acquire 45% in Eapteka pharmaceutical retailer, ​with 10% reserved for the founder and the CEO of the company Anton Budazlin, RBC business daily reported on October 22. As reported by ​bne IntelliNews​, this year ​Russia softened the rules of online medicine sales​, opening up the way for a growing market with large upside. Sberbank, in turn, in September in an interactive presentation kicked off its ​digital ecosystem under the Sber brand​, introducing new products, services and devices. Sberbank commented that new service will be integrated into healthcare products of the Sber ecosystem. The amount of the deal was undisclosed, and it is yet to be approved by the regulators. Eapteka has a monthly client base of over 4mn people and made a turnover of RUB5.7bn in 2019. In 9M20 the website and mobile app sales surged by 146% and 158%, respectively.
120 ​RUSSIA Country Report​ November 2020 www.intellinews.com