Moscow (AFP)
The Russian tech group Mail.ru announced on Tuesday that it was taking the name of its flagship product, the VK social network, the "Russian Facebook", so that the link between the various products of the group is "clear" for the user.
"VK is a single brand for the whole company. Unlike Mail.ru Group, it will be used not only at the company level but also in our products, as its users were not always aware of the links with each other. the others, "Boris Dobrodéïev, boss of the renamed group, explained in a statement.
In addition to VK and Odnoklassniki social networks and Mail.ru messaging, the group also has video games, transport, payment and delivery services.
It also has a joint venture with Sberbank, Russia's leading bank, in taxis and food delivery.
The group said that while, according to it, 100% of Russian Internet users were aware of the VK brand, many users used the social network without knowing that it was part, along with many other services, of the Mail.ru group.
This announcement follows the line of many Russian companies seeking to build entire ecosystems, such as Yandex - Russian internet giant, of which Mail.ru/VK is the main competitor.
Sberbank also recently announced to unite its ecosystem under the new name "Sber", symbolizing its desire to evolve into a technological giant.
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