In a pattern that exemplifies the booming nature of the Russian Internet, the market segment for web content discovery services – non-existent just months ago – is now rapidly filling with ambitious startups.
The public beta version of Netflip.ru was launched in mid-August, not long after a comparable site, SurfingBird.ru, went online, as reported by East-West Digital News. Inspired by the StumbleUpon.com model, both sites offer a way to discover new sites based on declared user interests and hobbies as well as on the ratings of like minded members of the community.
Netflip relies on a “robust algorithm” which “leverages math expertise from top western universities like Stanford and Columbia,” said co-founder Mikhail Kushnikov in an exchange with East-West Digital News. Among site features is an “infinite scrollable list of links” which allows users to browse a high volume of content rapidly and efficiently. Netflip also plans to release a mobile application and toolbars for browsers shortly.
“In addition, we are working on completely new features with no analog on either Russian or Western content recommendation services,” Kushnikov added.
A new type of targeted advertising
Netflip’s business model relies on “highly targeted” advertisement in a way it claims is more relevant than traditional contextual ad services. “A page about the political situation in the Middle East or a funny cat picture is useless for understanding precisely what kind of products or services a user might like. Netflip technology analyzes underlying individual preferences as a basis for exposing users to really meaningful ads,” argues Kushnikov.
The startup was self-financed during the product development stage. “Around $5,000 was spent on hardware, internet and UI design, plus pocket money for pizzas and Red Bulls,” jokes Kushnikov, currently a graduate student at Stanford GSB.
Netflip is currently searching for funding to invest in promotion and further product upgrades.
Netflip founders Sergey Agadzhanov and Mikhail Kushnikov both graduated from Moscow State University with a focus on artificial intelligence and have a background in consulting. Yaroslav Bezotosny, another co-founder, graduated from the Moscow Physics and Engineering Institute. He participated in the development of a geo-based social network and worked on a thesis of optimizing databases for maximum performance.
The American StumbleUpon – which has no Russian version – has grown into a major traffic provider for blogs and sites. “Of traffic referred from social media sources [from 2009 to 2010], 44% came from Facebook, 41% came from StumbleUpon, 6.7% came from Digg, 5.13% came from Twitter, and 2% came from Reddit,” revealed a recent study by Lijit.com, a company based in Boulder, Colorado that provides audience analytics and marketing tools.
StumbleUpon raised $17 million earlier this year in Series B funding.
