♦ The value of this digital economy remains an unknown, although we are talking about extremely visible services, used daily by tens or hundreds of thousands of individuals or companies in Romania ♦ This can be an explanation for the fact that there is money in the market, but they do not reach the state budget, because the money circulates in the networks that are, paradoxically, that there are not, Alternative transport, online advertising, accommodation or delivery services are largely paid by card.
Digitalization, although it should have brought transparency, created a very opaque ecosystem. Although Google, Tiktok and Facebook are advised to have hundreds of millions of euros in the local level, they are not reported anywhere. For example, the American giant Meta, who operates the social networks Facebook and Instagram, has in Romania any legal entity, no «SRL» or a «SA», although it is one of the most important actors of the online advertising market, which could approach 500 million euros, according to estimates. Similarly, the cars that are registered in the «ecosystems» of Uber and Bolt are not uniquely identified, according to the taxis model. In Romania, the only institution where these alternative transport companies are authorized – on the alternative transport law (special law, different from that of taxis) – is ARR (Romanian Road Authority). But here are registered companies that deal with alternative transport, not cars individually. Specifically, every company that officially appears at ARR can operate tens, hundreds or thousands of cars. Their exact number is therefore unknown. And then, how can the authorities follow the money that moves in this economy? When it comes to delivery platforms – like Glovo or, more recently, Wolt, although deliveries are everywhere, in reality their total number remains unknown, since they are not direct employees of these groups, but are rented from temporary labor companies. And in tourism, where the hotels are suffocated by the competition from the apartments and houses listed on Airbnb, there is no reporting. According to ZF estimates based on market data, for each taxi in Bucharest there are 7-8 cars registered in Uber, Bolt and other ride-sharing platforms. Similarly, for each lion spent in the «classic» advertising (on print, TV, radio or outdoor), at least 5-6 lei go to social networks such as Instagram and Tiktok and to the Google giant. And when it comes to hospitality, one of six rooms rented in the tourist regime has come to be in the Airbnb system. But these are estimates. There are no official data on the value of these markets – neither individual nor cumulative. It is paradoxical that the value of this digital economy remains unknown, although we are talking about extremely visible services, used daily by tens or hundreds of thousands of natural persons or companies in Romania. This can be an explanation for the fact that there is money in the economy, but they do not reach the state budget, because the money has come to circulate in opaque networks, of which there is no data. However, banks have access to all these figures, by the fact that alternative transport, online advertising, accommodation or delivery services are largely paid by card.
Unanswered questions:
► How much money does the google, Tiktok and Facebook/ Instagram giants receive money from advertising from Romanian companies?
► Why don't the cars that do Uber or Bolt have a unique identification number as the taxis?
► How many people deliver home food for platforms such as Glovo, Bringo and Wolt
► How many of the businesses obtained from renting apartments in the Airbnb system pay taxes just like hotels?
► What is the value of this digital «underground» economy in reality, an economy that grows constantly?
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