PRESS: Russian min offers to ban foreign soft upgrade for govt

MOSCOW, Jan 26 (PRIME) -- Russia’s Communications and Mass Media Ministry intends to ban state authorities not only from buying foreign soft, but also from prolonging licenses for the already purchased products, business daily Vedomosti reported Thursday, citing Minister Nikolai Nikiforov’s report on replacement of foreign software.

Officially, the government does not limit purchase of service payments, and state customers use the loophole and buy “work to create new products based on foreign software,” according to a note to the minister’s report.

The flaw in the law deprives local developers and the country’s economy of huge incomes and impedes a progress in replacement of foreign software, as the ministry sees it.

Two unnamed federal officials told the daily that Nikiforov’s report will not be presented at the government’s meeting on Thursday and can be considered next time.

Natalya Timakova, press secretary for Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev, confirmed that the meeting’s agenda does not include an issue of import substitution, adding that the matter will be studied later.

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