Price wars: Ola takes Micro to 75 Indian cities, claims edge over Uber

Transportation app Ola today said it has expanded its ‘Micro’ service to 48 newer cities, taking the presence of its low-cost AC cab service to 75 cities in all, making the category “larger than the nearest competitor as a whole”. [caption id=“attachment_2737850” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  News18[/caption] Launched about two months ago, Ola has scaled up its ‘Micro’ offering to 75 cities, from 7. The cities added now include Patna, Aligarh, Amravati, Guntur, Jhansi, Mathura, Rourkela, Thanjavur, Ujjain, Hubli, Rajahmundry, Rajkot and Siliguri, among others. “In just under 7 weeks of its launch, Ola Micro alone as a category is larger than our nearest competitor as a whole,” Ola Chief Marketing Officer and Head of Categories Raghuvesh Sarup said, adding, “We are making it a comfortable AC cab ride at just Rs 6 per km.” He based his claim on the number of daily rides with just Ola Micro as against its US-based rival Uber. When contacted, an Uber spokesperson said: “We are excited to see the growth and momentum we have picked over the last few months, becoming the most popular ride-hailing app in India. It’s all possible because of the product and technology that provides better value to our riders and drivers using our platform.” She added, “Our focus remains firm on growing deeper into the cities we operate in and building an unmatched, consistent quality experience that Uber is known for, both in India and around the world.” Sarup said Micro has seen rapid acceptance and popularity, “compelling us to take it to over 75 cities within a short span of time”. “Like we had predicted a month ago, Ola Micro has taken the lead as the fastest growing category on our platform,” he added. Earlier this month, Uber had announced slashing fares of its ‘uberGO’ by up to 22 per cent in 10 non-metro cities, including Pune and Ahmedabad, to ward off competition from Ola. Swaroop said, Ola Micro and Mini drive the bulk of bookings for the company. “Ola Micro is our fastest rising category as of now and the most affordable. Around 75 per cent of our users are first time users of cab services. Around 25 per cent comprise of infrequent cab users.”