If you’re an American PC buyer, you’re pretty much accustomed to having to take and pay for the Windows (or Mac OS) operating systems preloaded on a new computer. While no one has paid much attention to that practice in the west, the Russian government smells a rat and is taking computer makers to task for not offering a no OS or alternative OS pre installed. We could only be so lucky here in America.
IT HAS SURFACED that Russian regulators initiated a case against some of the major notebook PC brands last month, charging that they are engaged in anticompetitive practices by preloading only Microsoft operating systems on their machines.
The companies named by the Commission of the Federal Antimonopoly Service (FAS Russia) are Acer, ASUSTeK, Dell, Hewlett-Packard, Samsung and Toshiba. FAS Russia has also contacted Fujitsu and said it will also send enquiries to some other PC makers including Lenovo, Sony and Roverbook.
FAS said in a statement, “It is suspected that the notebook manufacturers were engaged in concerted actions by pre-installing the operational system of the same vendor on the notebooks sold to consumers who in most cases did not have a possibility to choose and buy the required notebook model without a pre-installed operational system or refuse to use the product tied to their purchase (the operational system of the Microsoft Corporation).” (The Inquirer)
July 27, 2009
Russian telecom calls Skype a “security threat”
Russia telecom industry has warned that none otehr than Skype is a serious threat to national security. The mostly free service is very popular with an increasingly connected Russian population, driving profits from old school telephone use down. Sounds more like whining from a faltering monopoly to me.
At a meeting of the lobby this week, telecom executives portrayed the most popular VoIP programs like Skype and Icq as encroaching foreign entities that the government must control.
“Without government restrictions, IP telephony causes certain concerns about security,” the lobby’s press release said. “Most of the service operators working in Russia, such as Skype and Icq, are foreign. It is therefore necessary to protect the native companies in this sector and so forth.” (Reuters)
Filed under Business, News, Only in Russia by admin
While a great many things have improved in Russia after the fall of Soviet rule, hard infrastructure has stubbornly resisted modernization. Bureaucracy and corruption are the two most likely culprits, but streets, rail and ports seem to have been low funding priorities for the politicians as well. Don’t let this deter you from visiting Russia. The detour and work around are deeply implanted in the psyche of every Russian. People and things seem to move in spite of the obstacles, if more a bit slowly at times.
All countries that have successfully modernized ran into this limiter of economic growth in the early stages, and decisively took to amending the situation. One can confidently say: only those who managed to jump this barrier succeeded in modernizing. Those who threw in their hands were left in the past. Russia, sadly, had nothing to brag about here. From 1995 to 2008, the length of the auto and rail network hardly expanded (comprising 750,000 and 755,000, and 87,000 and 86,000 kilometers [respectively]; Russia by numbers. Official publication. Federal State Statistical Service, 2009, chart 18.9). From 1989 to 2008, the volume of overseas transport fell by 4.8 percent, and the number of airline passengers- by 2.1 times; housing stock put into operation fell by 34%, and connecting to the power grid became a nationwide problem. Leading countries, on the other hand, behaved in a completely different manner. Its customary now to compare Russia with the other BRIC [Brazil Russia India China] countries – and the comparison here is staggering. In Brazil, the length of the road network grew by 65% from 1988 to 2005; the volume of overseas transport by 90%; and the number of airline passengers more than doubled. It’s better not to recall China: in only the last five years, 3.1 billion square meters of housing were built, 480,000 km of automotive and 19,000 km of rail routes; 16 large new airports have been put into operation, the first high-speed trains have been launched, six Chinese ports entered the list of the top 12 sea gateways of the world (moreover, the least busy of them handles more cargo than all of Russia’s ports combined), and connecting to the electrical grid now takes 19 days. (The Other Russia)
Filed under Business, Life in Russia, Visiting Russia by admin
July 22, 2009
Farewell to actor / singer Pavel Semeyan
Pavel Smeyan was born in Moscow, Russia in 1957 and died of cancer in a hospital in Germany on 12 July 2009 . He was of 52. While unknown in the west, Pavel was enormously popular in Russia.
Pavel graduated from the Gnesins’ State Institute of Music majoring in the saxophone. He played in various philharmonics, and worked in Rosconcert and the Lenkom Theatre. He dubbed and played roles and recorded songs for more than 20 movies and animations including Mary Poppins, Goodbye, There’s Good Weather in Deribasovskaya and It’s Raining Again in Brighton Beach. He sang in the famous rock operas The Star and Death of Joaquin Murrieta, Juno and Avos. His first songs first appeared on records of the Rock Atelier band in 1981. Later he released three music albums as a solo artist.
Filed under Arts, Business, Persons of Interest, Video by admin
July 21, 2009
The trend continues: Another Oligarc flees Russia
In what seems to be a continuing trend, that may be accelerating from a bad economy, some Russian Oligarchs are running to the west to escape taxes and lawsuits.
Shalva Chigirinsky, a Russian businessman of Georgian origin, is hemmed on many sides by lawsuits these days, and the offices of an oil firm he controlled until recently were raided by law enforcement officers.
If reports of him having left for the US are true, Chigirinsky would join a growing list of oligarchs who have fled to the West in the face of legal problems.
Investigators descended on Oil Company Magma, a subsidiary of Sibir Energy, on August 8. According to a statement by Sibir Energy, investigators from the Interior Ministry were interested in the commercial activities of the Moscow Oil Company in 2002 and 2003 and the Moscow Oil and Gas Company in 2006. These companies were being run by Chigirinsky at the time.
Interfax reported that the inspection was related to suspected tax evasion, citing police sources.
Sibir Energy is also suing Chigirinsky. Until recently, he was a major shareholder of the company, and according to media reports, Sibir Energy is suing Chigirinsky over what it claims were unauthorized payments while he was directing the company, and has applied to the High Court of Justice in London. The claim currently stands at $328 million. (Moscow News)
There’s little doubt that many of these neo rich skirted laws on their way to making fortunes. Poorly written laws and random enforcement by a corrupt government can’t help either. If Mr. Chigirinsky is hoping to escape the latter here in the US, he may be disappointed. We have the same problem with our government, and it’s getting worse.
Filed under Business, News, Persons of Interest by admin
May 20, 2009
Russia’s new manufacturing numbers down
If there was any question wether or not Russia is participating in the world recession, its manufacturing numbers should remove any doubt.
New figures from Rosstat, Russia’s statistical agency, indicate that there are little signs of improvement in the real Russian economy. The latest numbers, published on May 18th, show that manufacturing output fell 14.9 percent in the first quarter of 2009. Similarly, a report on the state of the economy published on May 15th showed that GDP had fallen 9.5 percent year-on-year in the first quarter. The International Monetary Fund predicted last month that Russian GDP would fall 6 percent in 2009. (The Other Russia)
Most of the finished durable goods produced in Russia are consumed by the local market. This is a strong indicator that Russians are not spending.
Even with the world recession taking its toll on employment, foreigners with ceertain citical skills can find exceptional compensation Russia. it’s also worth noting, that the moajnority of these are in and around Moscow, which is still the world’s most expensive city.
Industries welcoming expats include financial institutions, telecommunications, retail, and until lately, development. Russia experienced a development boom and the industry needed project managers. The industries where you can hardly find an expat are manufacturing and the so-called strategic industries like defense and aviation. There are traditionally many expats in oil and gas, but they have recently hit snags in those industries too.
When people think about Russia, they tend to expect low salaries. But one should draw a line between agriculture and manufacturing in small towns and big banks in European cities such as Moscow and St. Petersburg. Salaries in major banks, financial institutions, telecommunication and oil and gas companies are similar to those in other world business centers. When we talk about expat salaries in Russia, it’s an annual compensation of about $300-400k net. (Russian Beyond the Headlines)
Filed under Business, Life in Russia by admin
