Page 28 - BNE_magazine_05_2020

28 I Companies & Markets bne May 2020
Amid the recent surge in demand for grocery products, food delivery company Elementaree is now selling discounted “quarantine food packs,” offering its customers to spend epidemic times “without panic.” The startup has just secured $5mn in equity funding from Russian and French investors.
Offline retail to adapt or die
The epidemic triggered offline retailers to either shut down or change radically. In late March M.Video-Eldorado,
a leading consumer electronic and house appliance retail chain, announced its activities will entirely switch to online, presenting the measure as temporary. Offline outlets will be transformed into pickup points or darkstores.
X5 Retail, a leading Russian food retailer, has begun installing self-checkout machines across its Pyaterochka proximity stores. Tested successfully in August and September last year, these self-checkouts are now already installed at 369 stores. The plan for 2020 is to have a total of 12,000 units operating. “Through mass implementation of self-service technologies, [we] seek to minimise contact between customers and store personnel,” the company stated.
Hungary's media authority awards 5G licences for €350mn
bne IntelliNews
Hungarian telecom providers paid a combined HUF126bn (€354mn) for 15-year concessions of 5G frequency bands, the state media authority NMHH announced on March 26, adding that competition between three incumbents was fierce.
The NMHH announced tenders for the sale of 700MHz, 2100MHz, 2600MHz and 3600 MHz frequency bands in the summer. Four companies submitted bids in August and the market regulator unveiled the list of companies eligible for 5G auctions a month later.
Romanian-based Digi was the fourth applicant but its bid was rejected by the market regulator as the tender document included a section that excludes candidates over violations of previous antitrust rules in the last 24 months.
www.bne.eu
On its side, consumer safety watchdog Rospotrebnadzor urged Russians to move to cashless payments, citing World Health Organization guidelines. These state that a virus can linger on a banknote for three to four days.
While retail SMBs were locked down, some online majors lent them a helpful hand. Yandex.Direct, the search engine marketing business of Yandex, is offering up to RUB15,000 (around $200) in bonuses to buy ad links.
Wildberries launched online sales training sessions for entrepreneurs. The initiative targets entertainment, fitness, culture, education and restaurant businesses, which COVID-19 has hit very severely.
In late March, the trade ministry joined forces with industry players to launch a free online business consulting services. Small and mid-sized businesses will receive advice on how to connect to online marketplaces, develop content, manage assortment and deal with fulfilment or logistic challenges.
Market leader Magyar Telekom paid €150mn for 5G licenses.
Digi was fined HUF90mn for providing misleading information to the authorities when it acquired Invitel's retail business in 2018. According to local media, this was initiated by sector peer Telenor. The company's appeal was rejected.
Hungary is the second market in which Digi has started developing its own 5G network. In June 2019, it began rolling out the Digi Mobil 5G Smart network in Romania and broadcast stations are already live in Bucharest and several other cities.
“Hungary is the second market in which Digi has started developing its own 5G network”