Launched in early 2011, Flirtic.com makes it easy to meet, have fun and flirt with new people. Flirtic aims to make dating fun by giving its users the ability to express themselves and find their perfect match. Flirtic offers messaging, wall posts, likes and fun games. Flirtic shareholders include Andrei Korobeinik and Evgeny Pshenichnikov, founders of Rate Solutions, MTVP and angel investor Jaak Roosipuu.

Allan Martinson MTVP has had a few noitceable exits including sale of Reksoft to Technoserv in 2008.

Zappos

Launched in June 2010, Sapato.ru has 2 million monthly visitors. Based in Moscow, Sapato is headed by CEO Matthieu Lannegrand. Sapato‘s sales turnover ammounted to some $3 million for the first year of operations.

The other Russian online shoe store Lamoda.ru, which launched in early 2011, is backed by Rocket Internet of Samwer brothers,Tengelmann Group of Germany, Holtzbrinck Ventures and Investment AB Kinnevik.

In 2008, Intel Capital invested in Czech online retailer Mall.cz.

Intel Capital

AlterGeo previously raised $1 million from Kite Ventures and AddVenture.

AlterGeo (formerly Wi2Geo), like Foursquare, is a Russian location-based mobile platform (geo social service) that makes cities easier to explore. AlterGeo users can “check in” via a smartphone app and share their location with friends while collecting coupons, points and virtual badges. For example, the leading Russian retail bank VTB24 launched a loyalty program “Become a major of VTB24!” with Foursquare in April 2011. Next month VTB24 added AlterGeo to its loyalty program.

Launched as Wi2Geo in Moscow in July 2008, AlterGeo has more than 0.7 million users. AlterGeo was founded by Sergey Kurlovich and Denis Alaev in 2007. Almaz Capital has investment in mobile social network provider Apollo.

Founded in 2007, Foursquare has over 8 million registered users worldwide. Its users make over 2.5 million check-ins per day. Over 250,000 businesses use its merchant platform. Foursquare raised more than $20 million from Union Square Ventures, O’Reilly AlphaTech Ventures, Andreessen Horowitz and angel investors.

In 2010, Intel Capital invested $2 million in Rock Flow Dynamics in Russia.

Founded in early 2010, Zenmoney.ru (Дзенмани.ру) offers online accounting and planning service for personal finances. Based in St. Petersburg, Zenmoney is headed by CEO Anton Fedosin.

Zenmoney appeared on Yandex radar by taking part in Yandex.Start (Яндекс.Старт) start-up meeting on March 15, 2011. Yandex.Factory makes investments in seed and early-stage internet and mobile start-ups in the range several hundred thousand dollars.

Yandex recently acquired two Russian start-ups such as web login service Loginza and website analytics service WebVizor. Each deal was in the range of few hundred thousand dollars.

In 2010, Yandex invested $3 million in facial recognition company Face.com from  Israel.

Founded in 2002, KinoStar DeLuxe Cinemas chain includes six multiplex movie theaters with 75 screens (including 4 IMAX screens) in Moscow and St. Petersburg. Rising Star Media revenues of KinoStar DeLuxe Cinemas amounted to $100 million in 2010. The private equity firm UFG, Shari Redstone and Paul Heth acquired Rising Star Media from National Amusements in late 2009.

Founded in 2002, Cinema Park operates 20 multiplex movie theaters with 169 screens in 15 cities in Russia. Cinema Park reported revenues of $120 million in 2010. Cinema Park is majority owned by ProfMedia. Its partner in Cinema Park is International Finance Corporation (IFC).

The united entity of Cinema Park and Kinostar DeLuxe (Rising Star Media) will create the largest cinema chain in Russia with 244 screens (incl. 9 IMAX screens), thus implying 9.6% market share in movie theaters in Russia.

In 2009, AlloCine of France acquired Russian cinema information site KinoPoisk.ru.

SiTime offers MEMS-based silicon timing solutions including resonators, oscillators and clock generators for telecom, networking, storage and wireless applications. The global market is valued at $5 billion.

SiTime Corporations is funded by Bosch Group, CampVentures, CID Group, Grazia Equity, Greylock Partners, JAFCO Ventures, New Enterprise Associates (NEA), and Northgate Capital.

RUSNANO recently invested in ItN Nanovation of Germany.

When Rambler merged with Afisha in 2010, it appointed new CEO Nikolay Molibog from Afisha, who replaced Olga Turischeva. The united company of Afisha and Rambler, which is owned by media group ProfMedia, has unvelied a new logo and brand of Rambler, reported newspaper Vedomosti. The new logo and brand were created by Afisha’s art director, Irina Voloshina and designer Eugene Timerman, according to the paper. The new Rambler logo will be launched on June 6, 2011. The new Rambler logo and brand visual symbol looks like a compass, a navigational instrument for determining direction relative to the Earth’s magnetic poles.

Launched in 1996, Rambler.ru is one of the leading Russian online portals. Rambler.ru monthly audience reached over 14 million users, according to TNS Web Index. Rambler.ru search market share in Russia is 1.5%, as compared to Yandex search share of 65%. Rambler‘s annual revenues exceed $100 million.

There is a recent influx of Russian online travel agencies (OTA) such as Oktogo.ru, Travelmenu, HipClub, Ostrovok.ru and travel meta-search engine Jizo.ru, which has to compete with global OTA such as Booking.com, Hotels.com and Airbnb.

Airbnb was founded by Nathan Blecharczyk (CTO), Brian Chesky (CEO) and Joe Gebbia (CPO) in 2007.

Airbnb raised $7.2 million from Sequoia Capital, Greylock, SV Angel, Ashton Kutcher and Youniversity Ventures.

Social game

Update: According to Ventech founder and general partner Alain Caffi, his firm Ventech invested $2.5 million in $5 million round in Pixonic.

In Russia, Ventech of France previously invested in Oktogo and women-centric online portal WomanJournal.ru.

Ventech is also an investor in Crocus Technology that recently agreed a multi-million dollar investment with RUSNANO.

According to Margus Uudam of ASI, the Estonian firm Ambient Sound Investments generated positive return from its investment in Moy Sklad (МойСклад). In early 2008, ASI invested $0.2 million for a 30% stake in LogneX.

Founded in 2007, LogneX has over 400 small and medium-sized business customers who use its Moy Sklad web-based inventory management service. Moscow-based LogneX (Moy Sklad) is headed by CEO Askar Rahimberdiev.

Almaz Capital Russia Fund I

Mobile video software provider Qik was acquired by Skype for over $150 million in January 2011.

Russia’s leading search engine company Yandex went IPO at $8 billion valuation on NASDAQ on May 24. Almaz Capital acquired a stake in Yandex at $1 billion valuation in September 2009.

Almaz Capital Managing Partner Peter Loukianoff was recently on the Board of Directors of Qik and managed Almaz‘s investment in Yandex.

In addition to Qik and Yandex, Almaz Capital invested into ERP software provider Acumatica, casual game publisher Alawar Entertainment, mobile social network provider Apollo, virtuallization software vendor Parallels and online travel agency Travelmenu.

Founded in 2006, NetByNet is the 4th largest broadband telecom operator in Moscow. NetByNet also operates in towns of the Moscow region and the Central Federal District of Russia. NetByNet reported 450,000 residential subscribers and 6,000 corporate customers at the end of 2010. NetByNet had revenues of $52 million and EBITDA of $25 million in 2010, according to the newspaper.

In addition to Aton Capital‘s investment, NetByNet raised $25 million from Gazprombank in 2007.

Aton Capital Partners, a growth capital investment division of Aton Capital Group, is headed by Dmitry Bosky.