MOSCOW, March 1. /TASS/. Total investments into augmented reality and virtual reality (AR&VR) surged 3.5 times year-on-year to 700 mln rubles ($12.1 mln) in Russia last year, the Augmented and Virtual Reality Association (AVRA) said in its research released on Tuesday.

According to the research, the number of proactively growing companies in Russia rose from 60 to 183 throughout the year of 2016, including 105 in Moscow and 25 in St. Petersburg. Small studios (with the staff from 3 to 20) are main drivers of the AR&VR industry, while Russian majors are still reluctant to do in-house developments.

Educational, entertainment, architecture and other spheres joined traditional advertising and marketing in use of AR&VR technologies.

"The AR&VR industry is dynamically monetizing; it is progressively turning from the exotica into the business," the research says.