Viber's Russian Roots

id you know that one of the most widely used messengers in the world, Viber, was developed by a native of Nizhny Novgorod? Its creator, Igor Magazinnik, now resides in Israel. He sold his brainchild back in 2014 for nearly a billion dollars and is currently working on a new startup – the taxi service Juno, which aims to compete with Uber in New York City.

Moving to Israel and the Developer's Beginnings

Igor Magazinnik immigrated to Israel with his family during the dissolution of the USSR in 1991 when he was just 16 years old. After finishing school and serving in the Israeli army, he enrolled in university. It was during his army service that he met his friend Talmon Marco, with whom he began implementing their first projects. It all started with the file-sharing service iMesh created by the friends, and it continued with the development of a mobile device alternative to Skype.

The Idea Behind Viber's Creation

he main drawback of Skype, as seen by Igor and Talmon, was the inability to make calls without adding the recipient to the contacts list beforehand. Another downside was its focus on stationary devices, whereas they wanted a messenger for mobile gadgets. Thus, their Viber was much gentler on phone batteries.

The driving force behind the young developers creating Viber was the idea that all mobile device users should be able to make cheap or ideally free calls from anywhere in the world. With globalization progressing rapidly and smartphones ubiquitous, the era of inhumane roaming charges from mobile operators was a thing of the past that needed to be addressed.

While Skype allowed free communication globally, it wasn't considered a complete solution due to excessive battery drain, leading users to inconvenient actions like scheduling calls in advance. The aim was to create a service that allowed simple calls anytime. With Skype still facing work issues, Viber's only real competitor remains WhatsApp, albeit less versatile, as it's optimized for text messages while Viber truly enables calls at any time.

Investment Matters

he project was funded partly by sponsors (the Israeli Shabtai family) and partly from the young entrepreneurs' own resources earned from iMesh. The total investment value at the time of Viber's sale in 2014 was just $20 million, yet the sale was valued at $900 million!

While the company is registered in the United States, its programmers work in Belarus due to the lower labor costs in the post-Soviet country, especially compared to Israel. Interestingly, Magazinnik holds dual citizenship – Belarusian and Israeli, without hindering his residence in different countries around the world.

nterestingly, Viber only began generating profits in 2013 when they started offering paid stickers in their store. While some free stickers are still available to users, the selection is limited, making paid options highly sought after.

What Lies Ahead?

Even after the sale, the friends remained in Viber Media's management structure for a while before shifting their focus and energy to a new, initially secretive project. It's now known as Juno, a taxi-calling service aiming to rival the renowned Uber. Initially launching in New York, it seems these talented developers have more in store.

The new service offers several distinct advantages over its main competitor. Currently, only the benefits for drivers are known. However, these benefits are game-changing! Firstly, the system's commission will be only 10% of the trip cost, half of Uber's rate. Secondly, drivers themselves can become shareholders of the company, with 50% of the shares reserved for them.

The program underwent real-world testing in 2016 when Juno paid Uber drivers $25 for a week of using their product. This initiative provided valuable information to refine the program.

The service is currently in beta mode, attracting customers with significant discounts to build a client base, indicating a full launch is imminent!

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