4 September 2024
Digital platforms are having a significant impact on the development of
the urban environment, accelerating innovation and helping to improve quality
of life. They are already impacting the Russian economy by creating
opportunities for temporary employment and labour mobility. Stimulating the
introduction of platform solutions into the urban economy will allow for faster
implementation of the latest technologies and improve the quality of services.
This was the conclusion reached by the participants of the session ‘The Digital
Present. Effective Platform Solutions for Different Economic Sectors', which
took place within the framework of the Eastern Economic Forum.
KEY CONCLUSIONS
Digital platforms push the boundaries of economic and business
development opportunities
“What is the main advantage and characteristic of digital platforms? What
can they help people with in general? We are removing the geographical and
economic boundaries that previously existed. In fact, we provide any territory
with access to goods, services, cars, real estate, if it is needed,” Vladislav
Fedulov, Managing Director for Government Relations, Avito.
“The peculiarity of
platform solutions is that citizens interact with them regularly, directly, and
most importantly, it forms a certain culture of consumption, a culture of
everyday life. On the one hand, platform solutions change cities and bring
digitalization. On the other hand, they completely change the consumer picture
and familiar things. We even had a hypothesis that with the introduction of
digital services in a certain mathematical pattern, the quality of life in a
city where the most basic services appear automatically increases,” Andrey
Samokhin, General Director, National PPP Center; Chief Executive Officer,
VEB.RF.
PROBLEMS
Weakness of the regulatory framework
governing relations between digital platform participants
“Legislation [regulating relations between participants in digital
platforms, – Ed.] is only just developing. <...> Therefore,
relations are regulated spontaneously: by trial and error. We have seen
outbursts of conflicts with the owners of order delivery points, with sellers
who were dissatisfied with the disorderliness of the rules for changing the
terms of trade, and so forth,” Andrey Sharonov, Chairman of the Supervisory
Board, Association of Digital Platforms.
“So, it turns out over time that it is impossible to develop this market
– it is very offline, complex and involves significant regulatory barriers, how
cities see the development of not only the transport system, but also the
labour market. We are increasingly moving into some kind of infrastructural
function, not only in the sense that we provide transport connectivity, provide
accessibility of transport, but also in the sense that we have to look at what
surrounds us as part of our own decisions,” Anton Petrakov, Director for
Government Relations, Yandex Taxi.
Risk of leakage of platform users’ personal data and increased volumes
of counterfeit products
“There
are potential risks of personal data leakage. More precisely, they are
increased due to the fact that platforms concentrate a huge amount of such
data. Another problem that is also being addressed is the high risks of
counterfeiting. Precisely by virtue of the fact that platforms are not sellers,
they do not have the ability, as traditional networks do, to check the quality
of the goods and be responsible for them. And the last thing I would probably
like to mention is that platforms create a large number of well-paid jobs. This
is perceived negatively,” Andrey
Sharonov, Chairman of the Supervisory Board, Association of Digital Platforms.
SOLUTIONS
Adjustment of legislation and regulation of labour relations
“Therefore, I believe that the same situation [similar to the
development and promotion of creative industries after the adoption of the
basic law on creative industries and measures to support them, – Ed.]
can happen, and it should happen. [Two spheres must be affected, – Ed.].
Firstly, it is the sphere of competition, it is the adjustment of anti-monopoly
legislation in the direction of inadmissibility of distortion between
infrastructural solutions, platforms. <...> Secondly, it is the sphere of
labour relations, <...> since the current model does not quite correctly
form relations between the platform, its employees and entrepreneurs, according
to the experts we rely on,” Denis Kravchenko, Deputy Chairman of the Committee
of the State Duma of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation on Economic
Policy.
“The concepts are important because we all speak a different language
with different agencies and stakeholders. The issue of labour relations,
platform employment, flexible employment, temporary employment is one of the
priorities. As a business, we have a request for regulation to be formulated
that will make it possible to solve some problematic issues in the way we see
them and synchronize them with the government’s approaches,” Anton Petrakov,
Director for Government Relations, Yandex Taxi.
** This
is a translation of material that was originally generated in Russian using artificial
intelligence.
For more information, visit the Roscongress Information and Analytical
System roscongress.org.
