What you need to know about the Russian market!

As the mobile app market growth slows down, developers are seeking beyond the traditional landscape to explore markets that offer more growth. In recent years, Russia has drawn developer's close attention. As a rising star, Russia has many unique aspects compared to other markets. To help developers fully understand and succeed in the Russian market, TradPlus and Yandex have jointly published this article, which provides a comprehensive interpretation of the Russian market and practical methods for user acquisition and ad monetization.

Russia is vigorously promoting the mobile app market's development

In today's evolving, competitive landscape, Russia ranks among the top performers with one of the largest mobile app markets in the world. With a population approaching 150 million, Russia offers immense smartphone market potential. You’ll find a tech-friendly environment, affordable connectivity, and low-cost smartphones, making it an exceptional opportunity for developers, publishers, and advertisers.

The Russian digital economy is experiencing a metamorphosis that significantly impacts economic, social, and ecological progress. According to experts, Russia’s digital economy is expected to grow by 5% in 2024 and has received significant government investment and backing. The IT industry is a strategic segment of the Russian economy and shows a growth rate that exceeds the country’s GDP. In addition to backing the digital technologies, Russia is supporting new and revised educational opportunities for students receiving degrees in IT to develop the industry further.

However, Russia has its local regulations and exercise caution when considering digital advertising and development. According to this new advertising law in Russia, advertisers must submit their information to the Unified Registry of Internet Advertising through the Advertising Data Operator. Each ad requires a unique token, or ERID, that will be used to track information. This is an area where the expertise of a trusted DSP provides safeguards, helping you navigate the challenges and alleviate any difficulties that may arise during this process.

Russia has huge growth potential waiting to be tapped

Russian market’s large potential is revealed from its impressive statistics. According to Statista, Russian app market is projected to grow by 8.46% from 2022 to 2027, resulting in a market volume of $3.6M by 2027. A projected growth in ARPU of 19% is expected from 2023 to 2027.

Messaging and social apps are quite popular among Russian users for communication and social interaction. Users prefer real-time communication with others, and companies can achieve higher sales levels by reaching a broader international audience. WhatsApp, VK, and Telegram are Russia's most popular messaging platforms.

In addition, the gaming market in Russia is another strongly favored and widely sought-after area. It is expected to grow by 6.73% from 2024 to 2027. 69% of Russian people aged 12-64 play games and 55% play games regularly. More importantly, 56% of the gamers play games on mobile phones. In Q3 2023, YoY growth of queries about mobile gaming rose +51%.

Russia has its unique user acquisition channels

User acquisition strategy is another essential component in business development. There are several key advertising platforms for mobile apps in Russia, which help developers reach their target audiences and drive user acquisition and engagement.

Yandex Direct

Yandex is Russia's largest search engine and digital advertising platform. Yandex Direct allows advertisers to search targeted audiences and display ads across the expansive Yandex network, including mobile devices.

VKontakte (VK) Ads

Like Facebook, VKontakte is a popular social networking platform in Russia. VK Ads allow advertisers to place targeted ads on VKontakte, including mobile app install ads.

Unity Ads and other global DSPs

Some international companies remain active in the Russian market. However, it's crucial to note that many have not adopted local ad IDs, placing the responsibility on developers to implement these themselves.

Telegram

One of Russia's most frequently used and highly popular messengers is Telegram, which combines private messaging and various channels like WeChat. Purchasing ads in popular channels and leveraging influencer marketing can be highly effective, mainly when a strong product-channel fit exists.

CPA networks

Cost Per Action (CPA) networks are another option that publishers should look into. CPAs bring together affiliates who want to earn commissions by promoting products and businesses that want their products promoted. For example, the Admitad partnership marketing platform helps advertisers and publishers of all sizes grow their businesses globally.

Yandex has its unique advantages in Russia

Wider user coverage

Yandex has established an enormous network with more than 263 billion monthly impressions that showcase different apps, dominating the market with highly exclusive traffic across Russia. This market includes mobile searches, music ecosystems, movies, taxis, product purchases, food deliveries, and more.

Precise targeting and acquisition of users

Yandex’s direct integrations with Huawei and Xiaomi enable one-click downloads from alternative stores. Our advanced targeting capabilities, powered by Machine Learning and LTV predictions, ensure your ads reach the most relevant audience. Ads are displayed across widely used products, offering a variety of formats for optimal engagement. Additionally, Yandex enhances iOS campaigns with SKAN4 support for both in-app and web conversions for refined tracking and reporting.

Mature advertising ID solutions

Yandex Ads has an automated solution for ad labeling. Yandex Ads will act as an Advertising Data Operator, simplifying the process of compliance with the new law. Yandex Ads will issue tokens for creatives and store them for at least one year, and will also automatically submit data to the Unified Register of Online Advertising.

Convenient payment options

Yandex Ads offers transparent bidding, results, and billing adjusted to your performance goals. Publishers can partner with payment providers like Yandex Pay, Qiwi, and Xsolla, or use other common forms of payment through bank transfers, e-wallets, and so on.

Brand safety guarantee

Yandex Ads is committed to providing maximum data protection and security. Its proactive approach includes advanced safeguards to protect its users and advertisers, offering a secure inventory, anti-fraud features, and guaranteed ad moderation.

TradPlus supports developers to succeed in Russia

TradPlus has always been actively collaborating with industry partners to continuously assist developers in finding new business growth. We hope to work with Yandex and other partners to help developers seize the huge potential of the Russian market.

Yandex and TradPlus have established strategic partnership. TradPlus' mediation platform VisiM and ad exchange platform TPX have integrated with Yandex's advertising network and Yandex DSP respectively, and have already achieved good results. The in-depth cooperation with Yandex will continue to provide TradPlus with significant advantages in Russia. In addition, TradPlus also maintains close cooperation with other mainstream advertising platforms in Russia, providing developers with premium and sufficient demand.

According to data from TradPlus, Russia's eCPM is rising rapidly, with Puzzle, Card, and Strategy genres all above $10. The eCPMs of Card in all ad types are catching the Japanese and Korean markets, performing impressively. TradPlus Exchange TPX has also entered the Top5 ad platforms in Russia. By accessing TradPlus VisiM and TPX, developers can fully leverage the main ad networks and DSPs demand in Russia and obtain higher ad revenue.

TradPlus and Yandex will continue our close collaboration, jointly support developers in user acquisition and ad monetization in Russia for new business growth.

Contact us for more information about the Russian market!

Yandex: cn-ad@yandex-team.com

TradPlus: contact@tradplus.com

References:

[1] Worldometers: https://www.worldometers.info/world-population/russia-population/

[2] GoMobile: https://gomobile.ru/

[3] Tech Behemoths: https://techbehemoths.com/companies/digital-strategy/russia

[4] SimilarWeb: https://pro.similarweb.com/

[5] Statista: https://www.statista.com/outlook/dmo/digital-media/video-games/mobile-games/russia

[6] SimilarWeb: https://pro.similarweb.com/

[7] SimilarWeb: https://pro.similarweb.com/