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EXPERT: BILL "ON STATE SUPPORT IN IT SECTOR" WILL COVER START-UP COMPANIES
by Erik Abrahamyan
ARMINFO
Monday, March 17, 16:32
The bill "On state support in IT sector" envisaging tax privileges for
IT enterprises will cover start-up companies, not the incumbent ones,
Karen Vardanyan, CEO of the Union of Information Technology Enterprises
(UITE), said at today's press conference in Yerevan.
He said that the IT sector in Armenia is developing slowly due
to poor financing. Nevertheless, he added that the IT sector can
increase its average annual growth from 22% to 30% even without any
tangible investment.
He stressed the need to conduct reforms in the education system,
develop business in the IT sector and create a single state structure
to protect the rights of innovation activities. "For the moment the
innovation activity is under control of various ministries and each
of them is hogging the cover", said Vardanyan. He recalled that all
those proposals have been submitted to the Armenian Government 4
years before.
Vazgen Safaryan, Head of the Union of Armenian Manufacturers, thinks
that the bill will support the small business in the IT sector. He
recalled that at the moment the share of the IT sector in Armenia's
GDP is 2-3%. The bill will give an opportunity to considerably increase
that share. In particular, the bill envisages creation of new 40-50 IT
companies, which will employ 15-20 specialists each. "I think that the
Government should provide tax privileges not only to the IT sector,
but also to other sectors of small and medium business by increasing
the annual VAT tax- exempt amount from 58.7 mln AMD to 100 mln AMD.
Economist Vardan Bostanjyan, in turn, said, "In 2010-2011 the Armenian
Government provided the IT sector with as much money as singer Nune
Yesayan raises during each of her concerts - 80 mln AMD".
To recall, the average monthly revenue of the IT sector in Armenia is
20 mln USD. 500 IT companies of Armenia employ 12 thsd specialists,
with 10 thsd of them being engineers.
To note, the UITE was founded in 2000. It unifies a number of companies
to protect their economic interests, stimulate the IT sector, etc. The
founders of the UITE are Migma, Algorithm, Link, ArmSoft, Arminco,
and Sedit.
by Erik Abrahamyan
ARMINFO
Monday, March 17, 16:32
The bill "On state support in IT sector" envisaging tax privileges for
IT enterprises will cover start-up companies, not the incumbent ones,
Karen Vardanyan, CEO of the Union of Information Technology Enterprises
(UITE), said at today's press conference in Yerevan.
He said that the IT sector in Armenia is developing slowly due
to poor financing. Nevertheless, he added that the IT sector can
increase its average annual growth from 22% to 30% even without any
tangible investment.
He stressed the need to conduct reforms in the education system,
develop business in the IT sector and create a single state structure
to protect the rights of innovation activities. "For the moment the
innovation activity is under control of various ministries and each
of them is hogging the cover", said Vardanyan. He recalled that all
those proposals have been submitted to the Armenian Government 4
years before.
Vazgen Safaryan, Head of the Union of Armenian Manufacturers, thinks
that the bill will support the small business in the IT sector. He
recalled that at the moment the share of the IT sector in Armenia's
GDP is 2-3%. The bill will give an opportunity to considerably increase
that share. In particular, the bill envisages creation of new 40-50 IT
companies, which will employ 15-20 specialists each. "I think that the
Government should provide tax privileges not only to the IT sector,
but also to other sectors of small and medium business by increasing
the annual VAT tax- exempt amount from 58.7 mln AMD to 100 mln AMD.
Economist Vardan Bostanjyan, in turn, said, "In 2010-2011 the Armenian
Government provided the IT sector with as much money as singer Nune
Yesayan raises during each of her concerts - 80 mln AMD".
To recall, the average monthly revenue of the IT sector in Armenia is
20 mln USD. 500 IT companies of Armenia employ 12 thsd specialists,
with 10 thsd of them being engineers.
To note, the UITE was founded in 2000. It unifies a number of companies
to protect their economic interests, stimulate the IT sector, etc. The
founders of the UITE are Migma, Algorithm, Link, ArmSoft, Arminco,
and Sedit.