MegaFon, a major Russian mobile operator and retailer, has increased its stake in video service Start to 50%, as reported by business daily Kommersant. The move follows the acquisition of 33.8% of the company, announced in October 2020.
The valuation of the startup — which was founded in 2017 — could reach or exceed 4 billion rubles (some $53 million at the current exchange rate), according to an expert estimate cited by Kommersant.
Touting itself as “the fastest growing player” on the Russian market, Start has issued more than 30 original films or series, some of which have made available on international platforms Amazon Prime (‘Gold Diggers’) and Netflix (‘Better Than Us’). Among Start’s main competitors are domestic platforms ivi, Okko, Amediateka alongside foreign players YouTube, iTunes and Google Play.
Telco money for household services
Almost simultaneously MTS, another Russian telecom major, announced an investment in a startup called Airo. MTS provided 60 million rubles (around $800,000) in exchange for a 10% stake, as reported by VC.RU.
Founded in 2017, Airo provides home cleaning and other domestic services in Moscow and St. Petersburg.
The funding was provided through a corporate venture fund which MTS launched in 2019. Under plans, the fund was expected to invest around some $15 million at the seed and Series A stages in the course of two years. It focuses on companies from Russia and elsewhere operating in the fields of AI, ML and Big Data; IoT; fintech; cloud and SaaS; edtech; eSports and media.
MTS also invested $12 million in YouDo, a high-tech day-to-day service marketplace, in a 2018 deal.
