Earlier this month Mail.Ru Group announced the launch of a new charity service, “Good Mail.Ru” (in Russian: Dobro Mail.ru) This site presents over 30 charities with over 115 projects across Russia. NGOs involved include the WWF, Spring at Heart, the Life Fund, and the Nastenka Fund.
Mail.ru users can make a donation or by submit an application to participate in a volunteer project directly on the Mail.ru portal. On their accounts, Mail.ru users can specify the skills that can be useful to charities, as well as track the progress of the projects that they have supported. Charities, in turn, can look for potential benefactors, depending on the region, profession, or skill.
The project is also open to businesses, which can sponsor various charitable activities.
“62 million Russians use our services, that’s 93% of the Russian Internet audience, and we certainly feel responsible for development. In modern Russia, there is not yet a one-to-one relationship with charity, and, at the same time, many need help, “said Dmitry Grishin, CEO and founder of Mail.Ru Group on the reasons behind “Good Mail.ru”.
The “Good Mail.Ru” site presents both long-term and urgent charitable requests, as well as videos and stories about individuals involved in charity work. In the future, the “Good Mail.Ru” plans to increase the number of funds and projects, including those in Russian small towns, and the company plans to integrate the service with its other products.
Mail.Ru Group is not the first online company in Russia to introduce charitable tools. Facebook allows users to make charitable contributions by sending gifts, while users of search engine giant “Yandex” can donate through “Collect Money. ” VKontakte and Facebook also allow for fundraisers on behalf of communities, organizations, or projects.
Source: Mail.Ru Group, RIA Novosti
