Tuesday, March 19

Tag: cab booking

Didi Chuxing considers going public in 2021; targets $60-bn valuation
Market

Didi Chuxing considers going public in 2021; targets $60-bn valuation

Hongkong, 21st Oct 2020: China's top ride-hailing firm Didi Chuxing is considering Hong Kong for a multibillion-dollar initial public offering (IPO) next year, people with knowledge of the matter said, rethinking previous aims to list in New York amid rising Sino-US tension. Didi, backed by technology investment giants SoftBank , Alibaba, and Tencent, has started initial talks with investment banks for the long-awaited IPO, according to three people. The people spoke on condition of anonymity as the information, including the identity of the banks, was private. The people said the Beijing-based company is targeting a valuation of more than $60 billion by the time of launching the IPO, expected as soon as in the first half of 2021. Founded eight years ago, Didi has begun generating h...
BUSINESS

Uber Post USD 2.9 billion Loss in Q1 2020

Uber lost USD 2.9 billion in the first quarter as its overseas investments were hammered by the coronavirus pandemic, but the company is looking to its growing food delivery business and aggressive cost-cutting to ease the pain. The ride-hailing giant said it is offloading Jump, its bike and scooter business, to Lime, a company in which it is investing USD 85 million. Jump had been losing about USD 60 million a quarter. While our Rides business has been hit hard by the ongoing pandemic, we have taken quick action to preserve the strength of our balance sheet, focus additional resources on Uber Eats, and prepare us for any recovery scenario, said CEO Dara Khosrowshahi in a statement. Along with the surge in food delivery, we are encouraged by the early signs we are seeing in m...
News

Uber Riders Maybe Blocked from the app

Uber riders prone to rude behavior such as leaving trash or urging drivers to speed may be booted from the app under a policy change that took effect here Wednesday. Uber riders in the US and Canada who have been consistently rated poorly by drivers will soon begin getting notices that they are at risk of losing access to the service. The policy change was rolled out in Australia and New Zealand last year, and recently in India, according to Uber. It is to be expanded to other Uber markets, with timing to be determined. "Respect is a two-way street, and so is accountability," Uber head of safety brand and initiatives Kate Parker said in an online post. "While we expect only a small number of riders to ultimately be impacted by ratings-based deactivations, it's the right thing ...
Ola Electric Raises Funds from Ratan Tata
FUNDING

Ola Electric Raises Funds from Ratan Tata

Ratan Tata, Chairman of Tata Sons, has invested in EV business of Ola called Ola Electric Mobility (OEM). The investment is a part of OEM's series A round of funding. Ratan Tata invests personally in Ola Electric, the statement said. But the details of the funding were not disclosed. "His investment in Ola Electric will bring his deep experience and mentorship to the company's ambitions to make electric mobility viable at scale," it added. Tata is also an early investor in ANI Technologies, Ola's parent company. He had invested in ANI Technologies in July 2015. In March this year, OEM had announced raising Rs 400 crore in a funding round led by Tiger Global and Matrix India. The electric vehicle ecosystem is evolving dramatically every day, and I believe Ola Electric will p...
Ola, Hyundai in talks for $300 million fund infusion
News

Ola, Hyundai in talks for $300 million fund infusion

NEW DELHI: Ola is in talks with Hyundai Motor Company for investing about USD 300 million in the cab-hailing platform, according to sources. The discussions are at an advanced stage and a deal could be closed in the next few weeks, sources said. If the deal goes through, it would be Hyundai's second investment in the Indian startup ecosystem. Previously, it had led a ₹100-crore funding round in car rental startup Revv. Ola did not respond to an e-mailed query on the development. A Hyundai Motors India spokesperson said the company is "open to cooperation with various potential partners but it is our policy not to comment on market speculation and rumours". The fresh funding will give the Bengaluru-based company more ammunition to compete with rival Uber in ...
You Can Now Book An Ola Cab From IRCTC’s Website!
News

You Can Now Book An Ola Cab From IRCTC’s Website!

The IRCTC-Ola collaboration will give customers the chance to book an Ola ride whenever they visit the IRCTC Rail Connect App or the website.   The Ola-IRCTC Partnership The railway Public Sector Undertaking (PSU) and Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) announced on Monday they were tying up with Ola, the cab aggregator, in a bid to provide railway travelers the opportunity of booking a taxi before and after their train travel. This initiative comes as the IRCTC wishes to provide connectivity from the moment their train commuters leave their house up until their final destination. The collaboration will be a six months trial destined to give customers access to Ola booking services whenever they use the IRCTC Rail Connect App or the website, according t...
Uber Ties Up With BBM Messenger On Ride Booking
News

Uber Ties Up With BBM Messenger On Ride Booking

Uber Technologies said on Monday it has joined forces with BBM Messenger to allow users around the world, including in the application’s biggest market of Indonesia, to book rides via the messenger service. The partnership agreement is with Creative Media Works, operating as BBM Messenger, the company said in a statement. ”With this partnership, BBM users can quickly request an Uber ride via BBM despite variations in quality of location, network speed, or device features,” said Chan Park, Uber’s general manager in Southeast Asia. The agreement means that BBM Messenger users, including both Android and iOS users, can book an Uber ride without leaving the BBM app, or being required to have a stand-alone Uber app on their phone, the company said. Creative Media works is a unit...
Uber Faces Criminal Probe Over Software Used to Evade Authorities
News

Uber Faces Criminal Probe Over Software Used to Evade Authorities

The U.S. Department of Justice has begun a criminal investigation into Uber Technologies Inc's use of a software tool that helped its drivers evade local transportation regulators, two sources familiar with the situation said. Uber has acknowledged the software, known as "Greyball," helped it identify and circumvent government officials who were trying to clamp down on Uber in areas where its service had not yet been approved, such as Portland, Oregon. The company prohibited the use of Greyball for this purpose shortly after the New York Times revealed its existence in March, saying the program was created to check ride requests to prevent fraud and safeguard drivers. The Times report triggered a barrage of negative publicity for the company. The criminal probe could become a sign...
Reliance Clarifies No plans to Launch App Based Taxi Service
News

Reliance Clarifies No plans to Launch App Based Taxi Service

Billionaire Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Industries has no plans to launch an app-based taxi service as the company sees no logic in diversifying into unrelated sectors. It has been speculated for months that Reliance Jio, the company's telecom venture that has created ripples by signing up 100 million customers in just 170 days of launch, will soon launch a taxi service. The company had not commented on the speculations so far but took to the Twitter to deny the foray after an online publication stated that Jio has ordered some 600 cars to "kickstart" the service. A Reliance spokesperson tweeted that the report is "WRONG and DENIED". The company has no plans to get into unrelated diversification , another official explained. Reliance Jio had earlier this week announced a strategic ...
Jugnoo the Auto-Rickshaw Aggregator Announced its Entry Into Taxi Aggregation Business
News

Jugnoo the Auto-Rickshaw Aggregator Announced its Entry Into Taxi Aggregation Business

Founded in late 2014 by a bunch of IITans,Jugnoo, the auto-rickshaw aggregator, announced its entry into the taxi aggregation business on Sunday to take on other Taxi aggregators like Ola and Uber. Apart from Taxi aggregator, Jugnoo also entered the market as an hyperlocal businesses food and grocery delivery service. As per the company, they are awaiting the right moment to enter into taxi aggregation business for some time. Launched as a pilot in Gurugram, Jugnoo intends to soon expand into other cities. "Jugnoo’s strategy to diversify its offerings and enter into the business vertical comes at a time when drivers are looking for an alternative to resolve their earnings and incentive issues," the company said in a press release. Beginning its operations in November 2014, Jugnoo ...
Cleartrip Integrates with Uber API to Offer Local Activities
News

Cleartrip Integrates with Uber API to Offer Local Activities

Online travel and activities platform Cleartrip today said it has partnered with global ride sharing company Uber that will integrate the latter's Application program interface (API) to make contextual local activity suggestions. This integration will also offer seamless Uber ride requests on the Cleartrip platform, a release issued here said. After this integration Uber riders can now discover and book local experiences in their cities. "We are excited to enable a new channel for our product suite through this partnership with Uber. We are sure this will increase the discoverability of our Local product. We have always innovated on customer experience and this will further the cause by taking the local activity right to the users when they most likely need one," Cleartrip Chief Mark...
Now Book Ola, Uber Through Google Search in India
News

Now Book Ola, Uber Through Google Search in India

Consumers will now be able to book a ride on Ola and Uber directly from Google Search. Earlier this year, Google had introduced the feature on Google Maps, where a dedicated tab with information for cab services was made available to Indian users, in addition to the existing driving, public transport, or walking options. "Now with this integration, commuters across the country can ask Google for directions and book ride services directly from Google Search," Google said in a statement. They will get to see a tab for ride services, both Uber and Ola, with fare estimates and pick-up times if a car is available near their location, it added. When a user requests for specific information like Taxi to Delhi or Ola/Uber to airport, the Google Search app or browser will direct the use...