site.btaGreece Vying for Its Place Under IT Sun
ESD 16:42:01 07-02-2022
ZH1638ES.110
110 INSIDE THE BALKANS - GREECE - TECHNOLOGIES
Greece Vying for Its Place
Under
IT Sun
Sofia, February 7 (Petar Kadrev of BTA) - Most people associate Greek economy with seaside or cultural tourism, and even those who know the country a bit better usually think of shipping as another leading sector. While Greece no doubt intends to retain its hold in these fields, it is increasingly looking for perspectives in the technological sector that would extract it from the European economic periphery and allow it to move closer to global processes.
Speaking at his visit to the offices of Viva Wallet, one of a series of Greek startups that have found a global niche, Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said Greece was not just a country that lived by tourism and its wonderful beaches, but also had human resources in technology which made him optimistic that technology would have an increasingly greater share in the country's GDP. The bank's interest was attracted precisely by the technological profile of the Greek company which offers its payment services platform internationally.
Such interest in the Greek technological sector is not isolated, however. Recently, it emerged that Facebook's parent organization, Meta Platforms, is in advanced talks aimed to establish an outlet company in Greece to transfer in the future activities currently based in other countries. Even more interesting, though, is Meta's intention to acquire the Greek Accusonus audio software company. According to information in Kathimerini, Meta will acquire 100 per cent of the Accusonus shares from its founders and the other shareholder, Big Pi Ventures. Meta is said to pay 70 to 100 million euro. The Greek startup is aimed to provide the audio solutions required by the virtual reality developed by the American technological giant. Established in 2013, Accusonus products are used by many Grammy-winning producers.
Another deal that recently drew media attention was the acquisition of Greek market research provider Pollfish by the American Prodege. As moneyreview.gr reported, the deal was worth some 75-80 million dollars. The Greek company offers a DIY research platform to companies and organizations through mobile phone applications. Some 200 million respondents take part in the surveys shown on the mobile applications and websites in cooperation with Pollfish.
As Kathimerini noted, the fact that Greece succeeded in attracting investments from technological giants like Microsoft, Amazon and Digital Reality, was probably decisive in Meta's stepping in the country, which could probably also be said about other acquisitions in the IT sector. These companies also develop datacentres and last generation cloud hubs, as well as offering the necessary infrastructure.
Particular attention was paid to Microsoft's plan to establish datacentres in Greece, announced by Microsoft President Brad Smith at the New Acropolis Museum alongside Kyriakos Mitsotakis in October 2020. The total financial effect of the investment is calculated at some 1.0 billion euro and Microsoft plans to skill approximately 100,000 people in Greece in digital technologies by 2025. According to Microsoft, this will make Greece one of the key players in cloud services, for business included.
But what attracts IT sector investors to Greece? Several factors, according to the attempt startupper.gr made to answer that question. On the one hand, Greek economy is recovering and the government is quite supportive of the digital transition, already also visible in the rapid digitization of public administration. Confidence in the country is growing and the successful management of the COVID-19 crisis helps overcome prejudices against it. Also, the Greek Recovery and Resilience Plan was among the first to be approved by the European Commission and is expected to bring in 32 billion euro, raise GDP by 7 percentage points and open 180,000 jobs by 2026. Some 25 per cent of the plan will be channeled towards digital transformation. The government also took steps to replace the bureaucratic maze faced by investors with a red carpet, reduce taxes for employed and capital and reform labour relations, among others.
Other advantages include Greek human capital and its high education. More particularly, Greeks rank fourth by percentage of university graduates in Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) countries, 60 per cent know at least one foreign language, and graduates of STEM (Science - Technology - Engineering - Mathematics) are about the EU average.
Then again, there are the stabilization of the banking system, as well as the natural, cultural and historical resources that provide an attractive environment for tourists, "digital nomads" and multinational companies.
Definitely, Greece has the ambition to overcome the not necessarily fair but fixed stereotype of being a pleasant, but sleepy country, with a slow rhythm and a slightly Oriental tinge to it. Time will show whether its aspirations to become a technological leader in the region will come true, but the efforts in that direction are definitely showing the world a little-known Greece. BR//
ZH1638ES.110
110 INSIDE THE BALKANS - GREECE - TECHNOLOGIES
Greece Vying for Its Place
Under
IT Sun
Sofia, February 7 (Petar Kadrev of BTA) - Most people associate Greek economy with seaside or cultural tourism, and even those who know the country a bit better usually think of shipping as another leading sector. While Greece no doubt intends to retain its hold in these fields, it is increasingly looking for perspectives in the technological sector that would extract it from the European economic periphery and allow it to move closer to global processes.
Speaking at his visit to the offices of Viva Wallet, one of a series of Greek startups that have found a global niche, Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said Greece was not just a country that lived by tourism and its wonderful beaches, but also had human resources in technology which made him optimistic that technology would have an increasingly greater share in the country's GDP. The bank's interest was attracted precisely by the technological profile of the Greek company which offers its payment services platform internationally.
Such interest in the Greek technological sector is not isolated, however. Recently, it emerged that Facebook's parent organization, Meta Platforms, is in advanced talks aimed to establish an outlet company in Greece to transfer in the future activities currently based in other countries. Even more interesting, though, is Meta's intention to acquire the Greek Accusonus audio software company. According to information in Kathimerini, Meta will acquire 100 per cent of the Accusonus shares from its founders and the other shareholder, Big Pi Ventures. Meta is said to pay 70 to 100 million euro. The Greek startup is aimed to provide the audio solutions required by the virtual reality developed by the American technological giant. Established in 2013, Accusonus products are used by many Grammy-winning producers.
Another deal that recently drew media attention was the acquisition of Greek market research provider Pollfish by the American Prodege. As moneyreview.gr reported, the deal was worth some 75-80 million dollars. The Greek company offers a DIY research platform to companies and organizations through mobile phone applications. Some 200 million respondents take part in the surveys shown on the mobile applications and websites in cooperation with Pollfish.
As Kathimerini noted, the fact that Greece succeeded in attracting investments from technological giants like Microsoft, Amazon and Digital Reality, was probably decisive in Meta's stepping in the country, which could probably also be said about other acquisitions in the IT sector. These companies also develop datacentres and last generation cloud hubs, as well as offering the necessary infrastructure.
Particular attention was paid to Microsoft's plan to establish datacentres in Greece, announced by Microsoft President Brad Smith at the New Acropolis Museum alongside Kyriakos Mitsotakis in October 2020. The total financial effect of the investment is calculated at some 1.0 billion euro and Microsoft plans to skill approximately 100,000 people in Greece in digital technologies by 2025. According to Microsoft, this will make Greece one of the key players in cloud services, for business included.
But what attracts IT sector investors to Greece? Several factors, according to the attempt startupper.gr made to answer that question. On the one hand, Greek economy is recovering and the government is quite supportive of the digital transition, already also visible in the rapid digitization of public administration. Confidence in the country is growing and the successful management of the COVID-19 crisis helps overcome prejudices against it. Also, the Greek Recovery and Resilience Plan was among the first to be approved by the European Commission and is expected to bring in 32 billion euro, raise GDP by 7 percentage points and open 180,000 jobs by 2026. Some 25 per cent of the plan will be channeled towards digital transformation. The government also took steps to replace the bureaucratic maze faced by investors with a red carpet, reduce taxes for employed and capital and reform labour relations, among others.
Other advantages include Greek human capital and its high education. More particularly, Greeks rank fourth by percentage of university graduates in Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) countries, 60 per cent know at least one foreign language, and graduates of STEM (Science - Technology - Engineering - Mathematics) are about the EU average.
Then again, there are the stabilization of the banking system, as well as the natural, cultural and historical resources that provide an attractive environment for tourists, "digital nomads" and multinational companies.
Definitely, Greece has the ambition to overcome the not necessarily fair but fixed stereotype of being a pleasant, but sleepy country, with a slow rhythm and a slightly Oriental tinge to it. Time will show whether its aspirations to become a technological leader in the region will come true, but the efforts in that direction are definitely showing the world a little-known Greece. BR//
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