MOSCOW (RIA Novosti political commentator Alexander Yurov).
It is difficult to impress anyone these days. But people are impressed when they see a 3D image of their boss on their mobile phone and hear his real voice.
In this case, though, the boss in question is not speaking on a video, but is a still image transmitted from one phone to another.
A new technology developed by a Russian software company, SeeStorm, allows regular two-dimensional pictures to be transformed into 3D images with a touch of a button, and then be animated with a voice added for good measure.
The use of avatars (3D images) is becoming more and more popular in Japan, where the craze is sweeping the country hot on the heels of tamagotchi and other virtual pets. This time, in addition to some synthesized voices on their phones, the Japanese can see any accompanying images they might imagine. And now the new technology is coming to Europe.
Curiously, the success of the Russian company, whose technology can be built into any mobile phone model, did not come as a surprise. According to Anna Chistyakova, the SeeStorm marketing director, 2005 became a link in a chain of successes achieved by Russian software companies. In that sense, SeeStorm is not an exception. The company has been steadily growing for ten years, which is why it would be wrong to say this year was special. Teams of professionals, who know what and how they should create, now work on the market. They also know how to sell their products.
That certainly does not mean that Russian companies were not in demand earlier. Russian experts have long been capable of making products that are currently on offer on the market. However, overseas markets have only recently developed a thirst for technologies that Russian companies kept in storerooms.
Back in 2000, Russian software exports were expected to increase by 60% over the next few years, with the growth of Asian markets not exceeding 30%. Today, the software market has become one of the most dynamic segments of the Russian economy.
The authorities have also finally recognized the enormous potential of the Russian software market. Russian Minister of Communications and Information Technologies Leonid Reiman recently announced that the government was about to spend $650 million in the next five years on attracting foreign investment to the IT-industry. Software companies will also receive benefits. The authorities want to establish free economic zones, cut taxes, and to help the emergence of a Russian Silicon Valley. The ministry says the Russian software market will be worth $2 billion by 2007, with the global market worth about $16 billion. For comparison, the Russian software market today is worth $380-500 million.
In fact, there is another plausible explanation of such rapid growth. Many Russian software companies initially embarked on a difficult road to ensure their development. Contrary to their Chinese and Indian colleagues, Russians opted for "breakthrough" projects. Many Russian projects are founded on deep scientific knowledge and expertise. They never tried to achieve quick results, and sometimes had to wait for the market to catch up with their new technologies. "We have been a developer company for a long time," Chistyakova said. "We mainly dealt with investing in and developing technologies. SeeStorm dedicated most of its time and effort to preparing products for the market that only recently started to be commercialized. We gradually developed a client base and our company became known and valued on the market."
Today, few people talk about highly intelligent individuals, self-educated programmers who alone can achieve success in the high-tech world. These "loners" have less and less space on the IT-market. Geniuses cease to be individuals who play on the market on their own.
The success of SeeStorm clearly shows that only products promoted by organized teams of professionals can make the grade on the competitive market, which is why the current list of players on the Russian software market is so limited.
