Digital platforms have become a familiar tool in the daily lives of Muscovites.
According to research from the Department of Information Technology (DIT) of the City of Moscow, almost all residents of Moscow between the ages of 18 and 60 surveyed online are aware of and use digital platforms (99,5% and 99% respectively).
The business community, meanwhile, sees great potential in the ecosystem business model and 75% of ecosystems are planning to expand in the next two to three years.
The study defines digital ecosystems as services that meet the following criteria: they deploy IT infrastructure, are open to partners and operate on a win-win basis (partner relations based on mutual benefit).
According to Eduard Lysenko, head of DIT, the representative survey identified what Muscovites regard as the priority features of digital ecosystems and revealed a very high level of penetration of digital ecosystems in daily life.
“On average, the respondents use five digital platforms each, and 71% use them virtually every day. The number of digital services is growing fast, and this is happening in almost every sector. This is а promising area in the global economy. And as far as our export potential is concerned, 9% of the city’s ecosystems are already operating in international markets, while 75% are planning to access the international and regional levels,” notes Lysenko.
According to the survey, Muscovites see using ecosystems as a way of saving money (71%) while valuing convenience (75%) and timesaving (82%) even more; 53% of respondents are ready to switch completely to digital services for their everyday needs; and 7% are already working or earning extra via digital platforms, with a further 52% considering the possibility.
Muscovites identify the most popular areas of application of digital platforms as follows: financial (78%), online shopping (76%), transport (67%), and media and entertainment (62%). Women shop online (76%) and use food delivery services (51%) much more frequently than men.
The study included a survey of over 40 major digital platforms in Moscow (Sravni-ru, DOC+, Pochta Bank, V2V-Center, crowdfunding platform Planeta.ru, Foodmap, Renty.me, Zarabotal.ru and others), which showed that most ecosystem services (71%) want to develop in active dialogue with the city.
The preferred types of state support were integration with city services (22% of respondents), the opportunity to discuss problems with the city (13%) and information support from the city (12%).
The authors of the study also received expert comments from around 20 companies in various business sectors. Among the main digital ecosystem trends highlighted by the experts were processed automation, personalization of services and direct competition between ecosystems themselves. They also predicted strong growth in ecosystems in the coming years.
In terms of real problems and barriers over the next two to three years, they named the difficulty of designing and developing products and the need to devote major financial and time resources to creating ecosystems.
The study of Moscow’s digital ecosystems is available here.