Page 115 - RUSRptApr17

angered state authorities in recent months, according to Vedomosti sources. The daily reminded that his Oneksim group came under scrutiny from Russian security and tax authorities in April 2016 amid Kremlin irritation at the editorial independence of RBC.
Google has agreed to pay RUB439mn ($7.8mn) in fines and rewrite contracts with smartphone manufacturers under a settlement with Russia’s anti-monopoly watchdog over access to the Android operating system. The settlement ends a two-year legal battle after regulators — acting on a complaint filed by Yandex, Google’s main competitor in Russia — found that Google apps were being given prominence over rivals on Android-based smartphones. Under the agreement, which is to last for six years and nine months, Google will have to sign new contracts with manufacturers that allow them to pre-install competitors’ apps on Android phones’ home screens. Yandex said it expected its share of the Russian-language search market on Android to increase above 50 per cent after the settlement took effect. The company, which controls more than half the Russian search market on desktops, accounts for 38 per cent of Russian-language searches on mobile.
According to the FAS, the deal provides for the following steps to be taken by Google:
● Google will no longer demand exclusivity of its applications on Android-based devices in Russia;
● Google will be obliged not to restrict pre-installation of any competing search engines and applications (including on the default home screen);
● Google will refrain from stimulating pre-installation of the Google search as the only general search engine;
● Google will no longer enforce the parts of the previously signed agreements that contradict the terms of the settlement;
● Google will be committed to securing the rights of the third parties to include their search engines in the choice window.
Russia's media censor, Roskomnadzor, says Twitter has agreed to the transferitsRussianusers'datatoRussianserversbymid-2018. I na press statement, Roskomnadzor said the agency's chief, Alexander Zharov, has received confirmation from Twitter communications head Sinead McSweeney that the company is currently “in the process of determining what information about Russian citizens and organizations in commercial relations with Twitter in Russia can be stored in the Russian Federation."
Qiwi decided to establish two JVs with Shtrih-M, one of the leading manufacturers of cash register equipment in Russia , according to Kommersant. The JVs will focus on development, distribution and maintenance of new cash registers and operating systems for small and medium offline and online retailers. According to amendments in the law about cash registers entered into force in July 2016, all points of sales in Russia must start sending data about their transactions to the tax authorities in electronic format from cash registers in real time by July 2018. Thus, there will be massive renewals of cash register equipment in Russia during 2017- 2018. In 2016, there were around 2.5mn cash registers registered in the Russian Federal Tax Service, according to Kommersant. At the moment, it is difficult to estimate the impact of Qiwi’s new initiative on its business. According to Forbes, suppliers of cash registers plan to sell around 1.2mn devices in 2017 and 1.8mn devices in 2018, so they might earn at least RUB 60bn per annum. But the competition in this market might be quite tough. We think that this initiative demonstrates that
115 RUSSIA Country Report April 2017 www.intellinews.com