Good overview. I'd think one of the major problems, which Vivek lumped into the general topic 'corruption', is the Russian Mafia. Tech startups are already hard enough without having to worry about catching the attention of the mob if you succeed at making money.
The term "Russian Mafia" is just as general and shallow as "corruption". The reality is that "the mob" runs the gamut from petty thugs to sophisticated criminal corporate raiders.
The root of the issue is whether Russia's criminal tactics for corporate raiding apply to software startups. One can take over physical means of productions, but the same is close to impossible to do with software.
Arguably the most important factor stopping growth of startups in Russia is personal safety. Founders do startups to get rich. However in Russia financial success brings unwanted attention to founders. There are plenty of thugs salivating at an opportunity to go after a newly minted millionaire.
Most startup incubators in US & Europe offer help with networking, business & investment mentoring. Perhaps incubators in Russia need to help founders with personal security services.
I really liked the comment the author made about patents and the amount of opportunity in Russia today. One could literally grab something that has been proven to work well in the U.S. and do it there, making a lot of money in the process. Now that is the theory and I'm aware of increased risk of running business in Russia. However, it is definitely worth thinking about.
The moral of the story: Don't spout fire and brimstone at someone unless you're prepared to back it up and give a presentation to the entire world about it at a moment's notice.
Good prescriptions though, and I'd never heard of the http://www.patentfreezone.com/ before.