The Russian innovation technology market may face a great number of failures in the next three years due to the cyclical type of its development, a Russian investment director said on Monday.
"There is a high risk that Russian companies will develop longer than usual. On top of that, we are likely to see a lot of unsuccessful enterprises, write-offs when companies cannot raise new investment and cannot solve their internal marketing problems," Yan Ryazantsev from the Russian Venture Company told RIA Novosti in an interview.
The Russian Venture Company was established in 2006 to stimulate Russia's venture investment business, innovation development and to promote Russia's high-technology products to the international market. RVC's main task is to select the best venture management companies and to acquire stakes in venture funds established by these companies.
Innovation is one of President Dmitry Medvedev's top priority projects as he wants to reduce Russia's reliance on energy exports.
NATURAL MISFORTUNES
Ryazantsev said financial injections from the government and the expanding market might result in the failures of a significant number of projects.
"This will happen against the backdrop of a few but fantastically successful stories," he said.
"The government and innovation companies should not be overly pessimistic over all these future failures," Ryazantsev said, adding that such slumps were common during the market development process.
OASES FOR INNOVATION
Ryazantsev said it was quite natural that the government wanted to create so-called innovation oases living by their own rules.
"Very few people would argue with a statement that Russia's environment for doing business, including the innovation business, is aggressive. Several years will pass before it becomes favorable and hospitable," he said.
"If the government plans to create Skolkovo as a different system of cooperation between businesses, it looks like a reasonable reaction to modern reality, I mean that it's quite normal if the state wants to shield newly-born innovation companies from the problems which it cannot eliminate quickly enough," Ryazantsev said.
VENTURE FUNDS SHOULD NOT BE REGISTERED
Ryazantsev said the government was already facing discrepancies when establishing the venture market. For example, it should not insist on registering venture funds in Russia as the funds do not pay taxes.
"It doesn't really matter where a contract to create a fund is signed or where it is currently located," he said. "It is important where they invest. If a venture fund invests primarily in Russian companies, which pay taxes to our treasury, create new jobs in our country, they can be called Russian."
MOSCOW, Aug 2 (RIA Novosti)
