Indian ridesharer Ola enters Australia
In its first move abroad, Indian ridesharing specialist Ola has announced it is entering the Australian market. Launches are foreseen in Sydney, Melbourne and Perth, and driver recruitment in those cities will start soon.
Ola started up in Bangalore in 2011 and has grown rapidly in India, where smartphone adoption is booming. The company serves more than 110 cities in India, has around one million drivers, and about 125 million users.
Immense potential
For a 'local' start-up to venture beyond its home market is a great achievement. Bhavish Aggarwal, co-founder and CEO of Ola, is very excited about his company's first overseas expansion: “We see immense potential for the ridesharing ecosystem, which embraces new technology and innovation”.
Ola promises its Australian clients a “high-quality, affordable travel experience”. Once it gets regulatory approval and launches its Australian business, the company will square off against Uber, the ridehailing market leader in Australia and also its biggest rival back in India.
Biggest player
Ola has battled Uber ever since it entered the Indian market back in 2013. Both companies combined control 90% of the ridesharing market in India – and both claim to be the biggest player on that market.
One study puts Uber at 50% versus 44% for Ola. But Uber is present in just 29 cities, while Ola covers 110 cities across the country. Also, Ola offers its passengers wifi, films and music – an offer that plays well with its customers.
Large investments
In Australia, Ola will face other players than just Uber, including the European company Taxify, which opened up shop in Sydney at the end of last year, and expanded to Melbourne in January.
However, Uber remains the major player: in the three months to December, it gave 3.7 million rides to Australians – almost four times more than at the end of its first year in the country, back in 2015.
Incidentally, both Uber and Ola are the recipients of large investments from Softbank, the Japanese telecoms giant which has an active investment policy in innovative mobility. In December, SoftBank acquired a 20% stake in Uber.
