Google is giving other ride sharing services an opportunity to prosper sabotaging the monopoly of Uber.
Alphabet Inc. has revealed its plans regarding an application where there will be a separate tab devoted to ride sharing services. The announcement regarding the upgrade surfaced via the Maps blog.
The recent feature will enable the app to tabulate the best possible routes by making a comparison of various services. The search engine giant has added car sharing service like Ola Cabs, mytaxi, Hailo, Gett, 99 Taxis etc. to the list. This move itself will sabotage the presence of Uber in several countries.
GOOG has decided to retain Uber as the company’s ride service partner globally. But it is also paving the way for the above cab services in Germany, India, Brazil, UK and Spain. All those people who do not live in these countries will only have Uber as the dominant force. It is quite amusing to note that the core competitor of Uber, namely Lyft is not part of the recent upgrade. It is not evident that the reason behind not popping up is due to the negotiation barrier or Uber has added a clause that the company cannot add Lyft while being in collaboration with them.
The blogs by Google Maps noted the users present in the key cities have dealt with various issues while choosing the best possible transportation service to reach the destination. The Google Maps presently shows options for biking, transit, and walking. However, the recent update makes the equation more affordable for the masses. Moreover, it also makes the tedious process easier since users will not have to go to different websites to compare the tariffs rather GOOG will do the job for them.
The users will be required to install the ride hailing apps for various services on their smartphone to see the rates. So the condition is that the app needs to be installed on the smartphone, then the user needs to tap on the Google Maps ride sharing tab which will tabulate all the tariffs and pick up times in case the car is in the vicinity. The users have the option to chalk out the service with whom they wish to book a ride with and they will then be navigated to the chosen app by Google Maps directly.
The company will also show more options in circumstances they make sense. This actually means, in some cases, the users can get access to available ride option while walking. The service will also cater to various ride options by each provider in case of availability.
The update by Google Maps will surface on the Android devices before the week ends. However, the company has not specified about the iOS update. Google Maps is doing quite well on the iOS platform as well so till the time Apple Inc. does not come up with a service of this nature then Google can take advantage of the situation.
Uber was the only possible option when it came to ride hailing for the masses in various countries it renders its service to. However, Google Maps has come up with a major dent that can completely rupture the popularity of Uber and also take its business away. Considering this, Uber needs to be prepared to up its game or the competition might just become difficult to survive in the industry.
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