In recent years, the field of intellectual property in the Republic of Moldova has become not only an economic market but also an area of strategic interest for the Russian Federation. At the center of a controversy raising serious questions is ROZUM IT LLC, a company publicly presented as a provider of music content and technologies for monitoring music broadcast in public spaces across Moldova. However, documents and information reviewed as part of an investigation point to a potentially more troubling reality: alleged direct connections to Russian intellectual property management infrastructures and individuals associated with Russian interests.
A name that repeatedly appears in connection with ROZUM IT is Andrei Kricevski, a figure known in Russia for his links to collective rights management organizations, including RAO (Russian Authors’ Society) and VOIS (All-Russian Intellectual Property Organization). According to the information examined, Moldova’s National Anticorruption Center (CNA) allegedly identified his direct interest in promoting certain structures within Moldova through intermediaries, including Constantin Padure and Stela Gherman.
The documents reviewed suggest that Kricevski promoted the implementation in Moldova of the FONMIX and HIPERGRAF systems, audio-video monitoring and analysis platforms developed within the Russian technological ecosystem.
According to the investigation, Moldova’s Security and Intelligence Service (SIS) has reportedly flagged concerns related to Kricevski’s profile and his connections within the Russian Federation.
This raises a central question: Is ROZUM an independent Moldovan company, or a disguised continuation of the FONMIX infrastructure in Moldova?
Several technical elements cited in the investigation suggest possible links between the two platforms. It is alleged that rozum.md and fonmix.ru use identical access credentials, including the same username and password. In cybersecurity investigations, such a finding would generally be considered a significant indicator that different platforms may be operating on a shared technological infrastructure.
The DNS infrastructure reportedly used by ROZUM also appears to be linked to the same technical environment as fonmix.ru and nris.ru, the latter being associated with IPChain, a Russian digital intellectual property management system allegedly owned by Andrei Kricevski.
In Russia, digital infrastructures related to intellectual property are not viewed solely as commercial tools. According to the investigation, they form part of an integrated system for monitoring, reporting, and managing the economic activity of the music and media market. These systems allegedly handle not only financial flows but also strategic information about users and businesses.
The investigation also highlights the role of Prime Time AV Lab Limited, which owns 75% of ROZUM IT. The company has reportedly been linked in the past to Formax, the developer of the FONMIX system in Russia. The same structure is said to have connections with individuals involved in the leadership of the Russian collective management organizations RAO and VOIS.
Another noteworthy aspect is the timing of ROZUM IT’s appearance on the Moldovan market. According to the report, the company emerged shortly after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine began and has been represented by Belarusian citizen Alexei Guerassimov.
The investigation further claims that the infrastructure associated with the ROZUM ecosystem operates across several post-Soviet countries under different names and legal structures, suggesting the existence of a broader regional network. To present the software as originating from the European market, a company called ROZUM EUROPE was reportedly registered in Berlin. According to the report, this structure serves to conceal the Russian origin of the technology and its alleged connections to Andrei Kricevski’s network.
The investigation states that no actual business activity appears to be conducted at ROZUM EUROPE’s registered address in Berlin. Such arrangements, it argues, are often characteristic of entities established to obscure beneficial ownership, redirect financial flows, and create the appearance of an independent European company while distancing operations from Russian origins and interests.
ROZUM EUROPE is reportedly managed by Stela Gherman, who, according to the materials reviewed, was identified by the CNA as an intermediary for Andrei Kricevski. The investigation also claims that Gherman served as the first administrator of the MORA Association and that funds were transferred directly from Kricevski to her personal bank card.
The report notes that several Moldovan non-governmental organizations were established in support of ROZUM’s activities and in furtherance of Kricevski’s interests. Their stated purpose was to intervene in the field of intellectual property and influence the system of collective management of copyright and related rights. According to decisions issued by Moldova’s State Agency on Intellectual Property (AGEPI), organizations including MORA, MORA-CONEX, and Victoria Legalității were allegedly found to be registered, financed, and managed in the interests of Andrei Kricevski through intermediaries such as Constantin Pădure, Stela Gherman, and other associates.
The investigation considers it imperative to highlight what it describes as an effort, through the Victoria Legalității Association, to legalize and implement Russian-developed monitoring software in Moldova through a corresponding AGEPI decision. It recalls that a similar attempt allegedly took place in late 2019, when the FONMIX software was presented at AGEPI headquarters directly by RAO representatives. According to the report, AGEPI’s leadership at the time categorically rejected the proposal.
Against the backdrop of what the investigation describes as Russia’s hybrid warfare activities in the region, control over digital infrastructures that manage data and financial flows in the intellectual property sector is portrayed as a potential tool of economic and informational influence.
The authors conclude that the ROZUM case extends beyond intellectual property and enters the sphere of Moldova’s economic and information security, potentially representing a new channel of influence by Russian collective management organizations over a strategically important sector of the state.
The investigation notes that its next installment will examine allegations concerning the unlawful substitution of the functions of national collective management organizations, mechanisms through which local rights holders are allegedly deprived of millions of lei, users are allegedly misled, and efforts are allegedly being made to amend Moldova’s legal framework to promote and legalize the so-called “ROZUM rights” system.