Uber has been embroiled in several controversies in India and the US related to sexual harassment and aggressive culture. The investigation report led CEO Travis Kalanick to announce an indefinite leave of absence
Uber is working on an experimental service which could allow its driver partners in India to check on the health of their cars, including engine data, car temperature, fuel usage, etc in real time
India is the second largest market for Uber in the world and the company has already committed USD 3 billion investment in India.
Drivers with Ola and Uber across India are complaining of excessive supply, lowered incentives and declining incomes making it hard for them to pay EMIs.
The service was started in 2014 in Los Angeles and is now present as stand-alone app in 58 cities around the globe including Bangkok, Singapore, Tokyo, Hong Kong and Taipei.
“Government regulations should be broad in order to ensure companies don't create alternate channels to subsidise and incentivise in excess of the revenues collected from customers,†the report recommended.
The 50 cities that will fall under Ola Outstation service includes tourist destinations like Agra, Chandigarh, Jaipur Dehradun, etc. and industrial zones such as Meerut, Sonipat, Bhiwadi and Bawal.
India is the largest market for Uber outside the United States and accounts for 12 percent of all trips globally.
After spending nearly two decade as an entrepreneur, Kalanick has some key tips for entrepreneurs in India, most of it coming from his personal failures and life lessons.
India is the second largest market for the over USD 60 billion firm, after it exited from China, early this year.
The move by Uber is aimed at garnering more users from smaller towns where people like to use low cost smartphones and avoid downloading apps for fear of phones running out of memory.
Ola's Anand Subramanian said that it will follow the law of the land and have pressed the pause button on bike services as of now in Bangalore.
Ola has already initiated the loan scheme in Pune and Bengaluru and plans to partner with multiple finance partners in the next six months to make this facility available to drivers across the country, the company said in a release.
Taxi-hailing service Uber is investing "heavily" in safety measures for its customers in the country as it charts a USD 1-billion action plan to ramp up operations here. "Safety is a top of the line priority for us at Uber and we are investing heavily in this area," Uber India president Amit Jain told PTI.
Uber introduces debit card payment. Taxi-hailing app Uber on Monday said it has launched a debit card as an additional payment option for users in the country.