PJSC Mobile TeleSystems (MTS) has closed a deal to acquire a controlling stake in the Webinar group of companies, the largest Russian developer of solutions for video meetings, webinars and online events, the operator said in a statement.

The amount of the transaction is not called. Webinar will function as a separate structure within the MTS group and will continue to be managed by the current team. The deal has received all corporate approvals and permission from the Federal Antimonopoly Service.

According to Inessa Galaktionova, First Vice President for Telecommunications Business of MTS, given in the message, the acquisition of Webinar will not only complement the ecosystem of MTS B2B services, but will also give the operator the opportunity to create its own analogue of the Russian Zoom – a single universal application for video calls and conferences, and in the future for B2B clients – communication services integrated with videoconferencing due to synergy with Telecom API and artificial intelligence solutions.

„The video conferencing market in Russia is growing at a faster pace, the driver of this process was the transition of companies to remote work during the pandemic and the ongoing process of import substitution. Foreign companies are leaving the Russian market, high-quality solutions of domestic companies should come in their place. And Webinar already today offers services that can successfully replace the solutions of Western providers,” added Galaktionova.

Webinar was founded in 2008. Over the past year, the number of users of the company has exceeded 22 million, over the entire period of the company’s work, more than 10 thousand organizations have become its customers. Webinar services are registered in the register of domestic software and have their own server infrastructure in Russia.

Webinar owns the service for online meetings and meetings Webinar Meetings, a platform for holding webinars and online events Webinar, a platform for organizing blended learning for employees, customers, partners and students We.Study. Webinar also includes a COMDI division that provides large virtual and hybrid events on its own streaming platform.