"Why Facebook Suddenly Likes Russia" (2012 article)
Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg is in Russia and just visited with Russian prime minister Dmitry Medvedev.
Medvedev is the official widely viewed as a figurehead who swaps jobs with Russian president Vladimir Putin to help Putin get around term limits. But he's also been taking the lead on technology initiatives. He recently toured Twitter headquarters in San Francisco, for example.
What's up with Zuckerberg's visit?
Russia is one of the few countries where Facebook isn't a major player in social networking.
Local companies like VK.com and SUP, which owns LiveJournal, a U.S.-based site popular in Russia, are dominant instead.
In May 2009, Russian Internet giant DST invested $200 million for 2 percent of Facebook. At the time, Facebook's advertising engine hadn't taken off, the economy was in the grips of the banking sector's implosion, and Facebook could really use the cash. DST offered a lower valuation than Microsoft paid in 2007, but with easy, hands-off terms.
http://www.businessinsider.com/facebook-mark-zuckerberg-russia-2012-10
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