Somerville, MA -- (SBWIRE) -- 01/31/2013 -- In Russia, start-ups and business incubators are seeing massive expansion, drawing the attention of many international investment firms, including Tiger Global Management, a New York-based international investment management firm, which has mainly invested over 30 million dollars of its capital in Russia-based on-line commerce and travel sites, as well as retaining a stake in the Russian search engine giant, Yandex, which began trading on the Nasdaq in May, 2011. Bessemer Capital Ventures, along with other international partners, last year invested a startling 55 million dollars into on-line an on-line VIP shopping network KupiVip.ru. Likewise, angel investors like Zynga’s Mark Pincus and Skype and Facebook’s Peter Thiele, along with US Internet icons like Mark Zuckerburg and Sean Parker, have made major investments over the last year. Firebird’s mission is to take a broader approach to the investment boom, helping to connect US private investors both with US and European companies seeking capital to expand into the region and as well as Russian and C.I.S. companies based in the region looking to expand both locally and internationally, with a focus on start-up and mid-sized businesses. For these businesses, Firebird is offering its full suite of services dedicated to market entry, including facilitation of the subsidies and tax cuts being offered via the Russian government, so as to allow technology growth and expansion on a global level.

Currently, according to Comscore research, nearly sixty percent of Russians use the Internet. More surprisingly, Russian Internet users spend 100 percent more time on-line than any other nation. The country has long since taken over Germany as Europe’s largest Internet market. Likewise, smartphone penetration, according to Comscore, nears one hundred percent. “We see a lot of examples, as was the case in China, of Russian companies implementing successful business models from the West, improving on them, and innovating new and improved technologies from them. They are now ready and willing to expand not only regionally, but have produced new and improved technologies that can and will be competitive in US and European technology markets, so long as they are properly localized. We are helping them do just this and packaging them, for investment, in a way that international investors of all sizes are accustomed to.”

Firebird believes that there is still enormous room for regional growth, as well, both for Russian and C.I.S. technology companies and foreign companies entering the region, so long as they know how to operate efficiently and take advantage of, instead of being stunted by, the country’s complicated bureaucratic processes. With an annual GDP-per-capita growth of around 13 percent from1999 through 2010 Russian consumers have money to spend.

Firebird points to many additional advantages to doing business in Russia and the C.I.S., among them the region’s reputation as being a leader in the science and technology industries, which explains the very appealing businesses that have been and are being developed locally. According to the company, this is an added-value value incentive for international companies seeking to grow in Russia and the C.I.S., where they can find qualified staff that can easily comprehend and even improve upon their existing technologies. In addition, labor costs are extremely low. Outside of Moscow, especially in emerging “tech” cities like Novosibirsk, Perm’, Kazan’, Nizhnii Novgorod, Kiev, and even Tblisi (where Internet security R&D is highly advanced), Baku, and Almaty, technical geniuses, as well as brilliant designers and content producers, are available for a fraction of the cost that they would otherwise demand in the US and Europe.

The Russian government has invested tens of billions of dollars in innovation and has no plans to stop investing at present time. Likewise, regional governments, such as that of Tomsk, offer special economic zones that have attracted companies like Nokia Siemens.

Moscow’s Skolkovo mega-tech park, since its very recent launch in 2012, has in and of itself partnered with an enormous number of major US corporations, including Microsoft, Intel, Cisco, Apple, IBM, Honeywell and GE, to only name a few. “Obviously, these companies know what they are doing by so boldly rushing to enter the Russian technology market and agreeing to all the ambiguities that they are facing by acting so quickly. They are already seeing immense returns, which I think they themselves are somewhat astonished by.”

According to Firebird consultant Sergey Yakovlev, Firebird retains the belief that, despite all this growth and development, many small and mid-sized Russian and regional companies, international companies that could use revenues from the Russian market to revive their businesses, and international investors still do not have the capacity or comfort to enter the market. For this reason, its team of seasoned experts across applicable fields are offering a very hands-on approach to the consulting business.

Currently, according to Expert-RA, 44 per cent of start-ups’ costs when launching are spent on surveys and research. Although Firebird does perform traditional market research and risk analysis, it strives to be much more full service, accessible, and, most importantly for many companies, charge a small fraction of the costs for traditional consulting operations, by reducing margins on services performed by roughly 60 percent from what established brands offer and compensating for the profit loss through equity and profit sharing agreements. It feels that this model also reassures its clients that it will do its utmost to facilitate their rapid success.

Among a host of services traditional and non-traditional to consulting and market entry firms, Firebird performs direct sales, creates and develops partner networks for companies entering the region, and provides turnkey solutions that include registration, licensing, patenting, securing of intellectual property rights, facilitation of subsidies and tax cuts, local and Internet banking implementation, marketing and PR services, HR and corporate training, technology adaptation and integration, translation services (including dubbing and closed-captioning for companies offering audio and visual media-related products), legal services and much more, in addition to direct investment and investment facilitation. “We understand,” says Goldstein, “that to want to invest and expand in these markets is one thing and to have the budget and comfort level to do so quite another. Firebird will not simply hand you a report and a road map. Our experts will become your dedicated companions. We will share your risk and be with you every step of the way, whatever your objectives may be.”

About FIREBIRD INTERNATIONAL
Firebird employees a host of ambitious, energetic specialists, with experience across fields and most notable for their expertise in on-line banking systems, Internet security systems and anti-virus software, NFC and navigation and location-based technologies, telecommunications, WiMax, IP, broadcast and satellite communications systems, digital content provisioning, aggregation, and distribution systems, VoIP, energy, nano, and bio technologies, consumer electronics, design and publishing software, social networking platforms, iOS and Android applications, localized brand development, marketing, and PR services, governmental relationship building, and HR and corporate training. Due to the extensive work of co-founder Matthew Goldstein in opening and selling content for entertainment and media outlets in the region Firebird caters to many clients in the entertainment industry in terms of adaptation and sales of digital content as well as acquisition of regionally produced content.

The following represents the full list of services provided by the firm, targeted at startup and mid-sized level technology and media companies, or hybrids thereof, in the US and Europe seeking to expand to Russia and the C.I.S., Russia and regional companies seeking to grow locally and internationally, and investors seeking to gain footing in the region:

Political and Risk Analysis, Qualitative and quantitative market analysis, patenting, trademark and intellectual property registration, customs’ registration and facilitation, marketing adaptation, localized PR and marketing services, localized HR and corporate training, technology conversion, implementation, support, and development, digital and traditional translation services, dubbing and closed-captioning services, relationship building with local governments, facilitation of government subsidies and tax cuts in the US and Russia, creation of local partner networks, implantation of traditional and electronic banking systems, real estate location and evaluation, development of company branding, business plans, and financials for investment procurement, direct investment and investment facilitation, direct traditional and digital content licensing sales, direct technology licensing and sales, and added-value localized co-branding, event planning, and merchandising via licensing agreements.

For interested investors, Firebird has its own investors’ network, offering free membership to qualified investors and added-value, fee-based specialized services.

For more information, please call Firebird toll-free from the US at 1-800-593-4346 or, from the UK, at +44208588068. To ask questions via email, or schedule an appointment to visit with us in either Boston or New York, please fill out our contact form or simply write us at info@firebirdinternational.com. If you are a start-up, seeking financing for development, please submit your business plans to seed@firebirdinternational.com.

Contact:
CONTACT:
US 1-800-593-4346
Boston Direct: 1-508-955-2135
New York Direct: 1-646-383-3700
UK +44208588068
info@firebirdinternational.com