10 ms·

Uber’s New Rival in Australia: An Indian Upstart

119 points by johnny313 9y ago

YogeeKnows 9y ago
Australians get ready for questions/requests like a. Can you please cancel OLA ride and book a ride on Uber or vice versa? #incentives #UberOLATwosome b. Cash or OLA Money?
- tgasson 9y ago
  They'll struggle to get anywhere asking for cash. Australians generally carry little to no cash around
  - HumanDrivenDev 9y ago
    Really? As someone who has spent a long time in New Zealand it was striking to me how many places you needed cash for in Australia. EFTPOS is not ubiquitous there like it is here.
    - willbw 9y ago
      New Zealand for whatever reason I used cash a lot too. Australia you can pay stuff for small sums like $1 on card almost everywhere so no point to carry cash most of the time
      - HumanDrivenDev 9y ago
        edited parent - I meant EFTPOS wasn't as ubiquitous in AU as it was in NZ.
      - LouisSayers 9y ago
        You can do the same in NZ - it’s called eftpos / PayPass (PayWave in Aus). Cash is rarely needed in NZ if you’re a local. If you only carry credit cards though you’re going to need some cash.
        madeofpalk 9y ago
        FWIW, PayPass and PayWave are the trademarked terms used by MasterCard and Visa internationally (respectively) for contactless payment
      - sitharus 9y ago
        Australia has regulated interchange rates so credit/debit card acceptance has been higher. Credit cards are capped at 0.8% and debit cards are lower. Mastercard published a list: https://www.mastercard.com.au/en-au/about-mastercard/what-we-do/interchange.html https://www.mastercard.com.au/en-au/about-mastercard/what-we... NZ's government thinks (or thought, it's changed recently) that the market would sort it out so the current rates are up to 3% for credit and 1.5% for debit, again Mastercard's list is here: https://www.mastercard.co.nz/en-nz/about-mastercard/what-we-do/interchange.html https://www.mastercard.co.nz/en-nz/about-mastercard/what-we-... EFTPOS transaction are generally fee-free for all parties.
    - sitharus 9y ago
      I was in Canberra for a week late last year and I never used cash, everywhere took debit cards. Some had a surcharge for using debit over eftpos but I didn't see any shops or restaurants that were cash only. Market stalls were, unlike in NZ where mobile EFTPOS is almost everywhere.
    - steveh73 9y ago
      I would hazard a guess you could make 99.5% of transactions with EFTPOS in NZ - the exceptions might be a few vendors at farmers markets (most take EFTPOS), sausage sizzles/ad-hoc fundraisers, fruit honesty boxes on the side of the road, etc. Maybe only 85% would take credit/debit, though. From my experience in sydney/melbourne more places take credit/debit than NZ but also more places are cash only. Not as much penetration for EFTPOS.
    - hydrox24 9y ago
      It depends on when you were in Australia. EFTPOS fees for small amounts were essentially outlawed a year or so ago. That has made a big difference to pushing the final hold-out businesses into cashless in the last few months.
  - LouisSayers 9y ago
    In Melbourne there are so many cash only food places that you do need to carry cash - or at least know where the nearest atm is.
    - cyberferret 9y ago
      I'd say those businesses will have to evolve or die out. There is a great Japanese place in our town that I stopped frequenting purely because they didn't have an EFTPOS machine, and I often have to cash on me when returning from a customer visit etc. and I wanted a snack to bring home. Since they (finally) installed one after new owners took over, I go back there frequently now. With PayWave becoming so popular for even $1 transactions at the counter by literally waving your debit card at a machine, I haven't carried significant cash in my wallet for years now.
      - sincerely 9y ago
        With all due respect, I'd say this is definitely a product of your specific location/life circumstances. I live in one of the biggest cities in North America and "cash only" is not a hurdle for restaurants here.
        dorian-graph 9y ago
        > With all due respect, I'd say this is definitely a product of your specific location/life circumstances. Well, we are talking about Australia... I don't think the poster was talking about the whole world.
        ojm 9y ago
        Thank you for enlightening us on the Australian market from North America.
      - LouisSayers 9y ago
        When they say “cash only” everyone seems to understand it means “we dodge our taxes”. But the food is usually pretty cheap. I’d say they probably won’t evolve unless they start getting prosecuted for tax avoidance...
  - ojm 9y ago
    > Australians generally carry little to no cash around I haven’t had cash in my wallet for a few weeks now. Apple Pay or PayPass/Wave for even small amounts is fine. They just simply lose my business now if they don’t take card. And lots of the population is moving this way. The old cash only to avoid taxes is only good if you actually make a decent income to avoid said taxes.
  - Andrenid 9y ago
    I haven't carried cash or wallet for about a year now. All I use is my phone (CommBank app, which uses PayPass network). Whether it's a coffee, snack for my kid, weekly shopping or a night out, I can barely even remember the times I've been caught out. Maybe twice in a year. Only times I take my wallet out the door is if I'm driving (I live in Melbourne and mostly walk or take trams) or going to the Doctors or something that requires ID/Medicare. Food trucks, weekend markets, everyone has an EFTPOS/MPOS or CommBank tablet in their business now.
    - hug 9y ago
      Out of curiosity, where do you keep your myki? It's the one thing that ties me to carrying around a thing that can hold my cards. I don't carry cash, and quite often don't even carry my wallet, but I need somewhere to stash my myki if I'm taking the train & tram to work. Given that it may have anywhere between $100 and $1500 worth of value on it at a time, I don't really just want to throw it in a pocket.
  - dm8 9y ago
    I think your parent poster was stposting. I doubt Ola will allow cash payments in Aus. In India lot of people carry cash hence they allow cash payments from what I've heard.
  - flukus 9y ago
    I think that's just you. Most people I know still pay for anything small (like lunch or a taxi) in cash. I've been using it more lately because it's the only payment form with any type of anonymity.
- dm8 9y ago
  This forum is not like reddit for snarky/sarcastic comments. OLA folks are smart enough to cater to each individual local market. And all the drivers will be from local cities there.
thelittleone 9y ago
In case, like me, you're unfamiliar with the term "Upstart" in this context. I found a few vague definitions that boil down to: Startups are entrepreneurial businesses that start with external funding. Upstarts are businesses that start without significant external funding.
- _emacsomancer_ 9y ago
  Not the init daemon?
- hayksaakian 9y ago
  I'm under the impression they're using the 'dictionary definition' rather than a specialized jargon noun a person who has risen suddenly from a humble position to wealth, power, or a position of consequence. http://www.dictionary.com/browse/upstart http://www.dictionary.com/browse/upstart
  - paulddraper 9y ago
    Yeah, it's just the dictionary definition; the little guy trying to become big. It's a "start up", but that term is a bit ambiguous.
- maxxxxx 9y ago
  Doesn't "upstart" have a slightly negative connotation?
  - prawn 9y ago
    Not particularly. Most would interpret it here as "plucky". Small player tackling bigger players, having to work a bit harder and smarter, etc.
    - maxxxxx 9y ago
      Interesting. I thought this word is often used by incumbents to look down at the newcomer. English is not my first language so it's good to learn these subtleties.
manojlds 9y ago
Ola has been a pretty interesting company. They have tried a lot of things like integrating auto ricks into their network (which Uber has copied now), including Wifi, on board entertainment, pool pass, membership rates etc. They even had boat service when Chennai (my city) was flooded. I wish them good luck!
- clay_to_n 9y ago
  In India, Ola also seems to have nicer car models than Uber, at least at the cheapest price point without sharing your ride with a stranger. Coupled with the wi-fi and the entertainment system (to put on whatever of the limited Apple Music set you choose) made most of my friends in Bangalore prefer it.
  - what_ever 9y ago
    Ola also always more expensive than Uber when I was in India for a few weeks. And another anecdotal feedback is all of my friends felt Uber had better crop of drivers and service than Ola.
    - manojlds 9y ago
      I am the grand parent poster - have stopped using Ola as Uber drivers are more predictable. Also they have weird KYC requirements and wanted to send physical documents for Ola Money, blocking my money without that.
      - Brajeshwar 9y ago
        And that one. I did my PayTM KYC long before Aadhaar became the silver bullet. PayTM have the ₹10,000 limit per month without the KYC and my Uber bill usually got exhausted by the middle of the month. Heck, I can use the same PayTM balance to eat corn on the streets.
    - Brajeshwar 9y ago
      Personally, I agree with this. Never had a good experience with Ola (tried few times). Been riding with Uber since its introduction in India, starting with the very limited/costly option and now the most optimal "Premier". Never used sharing, so no experience with that. I usually talk to the drivers; they tend to drive for both Ola and Uber. Most of them seem to have a better earning with Uber. One of the key thing limiting me even trying Ola is that they have their own in-house Payment/Wallet system and no integration with a more common one such as PayTM. With Uber, I can PayTM as my default and do not worry about Credit Card PIN -- just ride, thank the driver and walk out. Nonetheless, I would still wish Ola the very best. We need more competition and even better services from all providers.
throwaway2312 9y ago
One excellent feature OLA has is giving your unique OTP to drivers before they start your ride. This prevents stupid cases on drivers picking up the wrong "John" "Dave" during peak times or outside popular venues.
ojm 9y ago
It’s nice to get some competition for Uber. In Melbourne we now have Taxify, Uber and GoCatch. A forth in the mix would be great.
siquick 9y ago
(Sydney resident) Taxify launched here in December with 50% off rides, people jumped on board and ditched Uber. 50% rides ended - everyone went back to Uber, including myself. Can't seen this ending any differently unless Ola is significantly cheaper. ____ Just tried to sign up for Ola and they couldn't even send me the verification text to sign up with.
- robryan 9y ago
  It keeps Uber honest. I have no idea at any time if Uber surge pricing is reasonable, being able to check against another app will help.
  - siquick 9y ago
    Don't get me wrong, I'm happy that there is competition but the vast majority of people just care about a car that turns up on time and doesn't cost them a fortune. If Taxify/Ola aren't doing anything majorly different from Uber then there's no reason for people to switch away from a service that proven to work.
    - darklajid 9y ago
      Anecdotally Singapore has (local) Grab and Uber. People seem to use both, I personally made far better experiences with Grab. Superficially they're the same, still there seems to be room for both and I personally prefer the Uber alternative more.
  - janetdrscott 9y ago
    “Is reasonable”? It’s an algorithm in place for when demand outstrips supply.
- jpatokal 9y ago
  Counter-anecdote: when Taxify started up, it was impossible to hail them where I lived in the Inner West. But I grabbed on yesterday on the way to the airport, it was at my house in 2 minutes, and the driver told me he now drives for Taxify exclusively -- it's still a bit cheaper for riders and the drivers make more. All that said, when Uber surges hard, finding a Taxify car is impossible since most drivers use both. Anyway, I've signed up for Ola and just got coupons for three free rides up to $25. The more competition and the larger the bonfires of VC money, the merrier!
Proven 9y ago
For what it’s worth, their pedestrian detection algo might be better
jamez1 9y ago
Some stats: Taxify has had 130k downloads in the last 4 months. Ola is at 24k for about 1 month. Far cry from Uber which does that in almost 2 days
- jpatokal 9y ago
  Those are worldwide stats, no? That's not going to tell you much about Australian ride sharing.
finebalance 9y ago
In the Indian market, Ola does a few things better than Uber. For example, they have an OTP, which is a 4-digit numerical code you need to provide to the driver at the start of every ride. In a low-trust market like India, this is instrumental in helping certain people pre-pay for this sort of service. Secondly, they've long had more options than Uber in types of service they provide: ie, rickshaw, car rentals, etc. And finally, they've also recently introduced ola credit, which is really convenient for me as I take short, low-cost rides to and fro work, and credit is sufficient to allow me to pay at one go at the end of the week. There is a perception that Ola has a lower quality of drivers in the Indian market, but I doubt such a thing would be replicated in Australia. That said, I've gotten quite a few stinkers from both services, so I'm sure that the bias in Indian middle/upper-middle classes against native companies plays strongly into the perception of Ola drivers as worse than Uber.
- darklajid 9y ago
  Spend four weeks in India (Pune) recently. Ola was by far more interesting and cheaper, but.. unavailable to me without local colleagues helping me. To sign up you needed an Indian mobile number (I brought a German and a Singaporean..). Unfortunate. Uber in India was god awful.
- simula67 9y ago
  Why do you think India is a low trust market ?
  - HaoZeke 9y ago
    Because it's a country dedicated to a short con followed by marriage to a young uneducated woman and more kids than common sense.
    - tfuop 9y ago
      Toilet paper wipers of western countries have their perception thus moulded by mainstream media...
    - 9y ago
jaimex2 9y ago
I'm guessing drivers will sign up to this along with Uber, Taxify and GoCatch and keep flicking between them or just use a bunch of phones with one acting as a hotspot. Which ever pays the best will take priority.
srean 9y ago
Ola drivers are probably not on HN, which is a shame because that would have revealed a more balanced picture. Ola drivers are often dealt a short end of the stick by Ola. Ola knows this, and gets away with it because many of the drivers come from a financial background where they do not have much of a choice. Drivers face ridiculous delays in getting paid their share of the ride, that is, if they get paid at all. You would often encounter Ola drivers insisting on getting paid by cash rather than Ola money. Ola's software backend leaves a lot to be desired, losing track of money is quite frequent, used to be routine before. I don't expect commentary from Ola drivers but hope some Ola engineers will comment on their engineering backend and culture: lack of work life balance, insane hours, continuous firefights to keep their service afloat, just about barely in spite of being staffed by way more engineers than Uber India. Someone privy to the details claimed -- "The marvel is not that the bear dances well, but that the bear dances at all." I am not sure if things have changed, they are rolling in so much investor money that they really don't have strong incentives to.

119 points by johnny313 9y ago

Australians get ready for questions/requests like a. Can you please cancel OLA ride and book a ride on Uber or vice versa? #incentives #UberOLATwosome b. Cash or OLA Money?

tgasson 9y ago
They'll struggle to get anywhere asking for cash. Australians generally carry little to no cash around
- HumanDrivenDev 9y ago
  Really? As someone who has spent a long time in New Zealand it was striking to me how many places you needed cash for in Australia. EFTPOS is not ubiquitous there like it is here.
  - willbw 9y ago
    New Zealand for whatever reason I used cash a lot too. Australia you can pay stuff for small sums like $1 on card almost everywhere so no point to carry cash most of the time
    - HumanDrivenDev 9y ago
      edited parent - I meant EFTPOS wasn't as ubiquitous in AU as it was in NZ.
    - LouisSayers 9y ago
      You can do the same in NZ - it’s called eftpos / PayPass (PayWave in Aus). Cash is rarely needed in NZ if you’re a local. If you only carry credit cards though you’re going to need some cash.
      - madeofpalk 9y ago
        FWIW, PayPass and PayWave are the trademarked terms used by MasterCard and Visa internationally (respectively) for contactless payment
    - sitharus 9y ago
      Australia has regulated interchange rates so credit/debit card acceptance has been higher. Credit cards are capped at 0.8% and debit cards are lower. Mastercard published a list: https://www.mastercard.com.au/en-au/about-mastercard/what-we-do/interchange.html https://www.mastercard.com.au/en-au/about-mastercard/what-we... NZ's government thinks (or thought, it's changed recently) that the market would sort it out so the current rates are up to 3% for credit and 1.5% for debit, again Mastercard's list is here: https://www.mastercard.co.nz/en-nz/about-mastercard/what-we-do/interchange.html https://www.mastercard.co.nz/en-nz/about-mastercard/what-we-... EFTPOS transaction are generally fee-free for all parties.
  - sitharus 9y ago
    I was in Canberra for a week late last year and I never used cash, everywhere took debit cards. Some had a surcharge for using debit over eftpos but I didn't see any shops or restaurants that were cash only. Market stalls were, unlike in NZ where mobile EFTPOS is almost everywhere.
  - steveh73 9y ago
    I would hazard a guess you could make 99.5% of transactions with EFTPOS in NZ - the exceptions might be a few vendors at farmers markets (most take EFTPOS), sausage sizzles/ad-hoc fundraisers, fruit honesty boxes on the side of the road, etc. Maybe only 85% would take credit/debit, though. From my experience in sydney/melbourne more places take credit/debit than NZ but also more places are cash only. Not as much penetration for EFTPOS.
  - hydrox24 9y ago
    It depends on when you were in Australia. EFTPOS fees for small amounts were essentially outlawed a year or so ago. That has made a big difference to pushing the final hold-out businesses into cashless in the last few months.
- LouisSayers 9y ago
  In Melbourne there are so many cash only food places that you do need to carry cash - or at least know where the nearest atm is.
  - cyberferret 9y ago
    I'd say those businesses will have to evolve or die out. There is a great Japanese place in our town that I stopped frequenting purely because they didn't have an EFTPOS machine, and I often have to cash on me when returning from a customer visit etc. and I wanted a snack to bring home. Since they (finally) installed one after new owners took over, I go back there frequently now. With PayWave becoming so popular for even $1 transactions at the counter by literally waving your debit card at a machine, I haven't carried significant cash in my wallet for years now.
    - sincerely 9y ago
      With all due respect, I'd say this is definitely a product of your specific location/life circumstances. I live in one of the biggest cities in North America and "cash only" is not a hurdle for restaurants here.
      - dorian-graph 9y ago
        > With all due respect, I'd say this is definitely a product of your specific location/life circumstances. Well, we are talking about Australia... I don't think the poster was talking about the whole world.
      - ojm 9y ago
        Thank you for enlightening us on the Australian market from North America.
    - LouisSayers 9y ago
      When they say “cash only” everyone seems to understand it means “we dodge our taxes”. But the food is usually pretty cheap. I’d say they probably won’t evolve unless they start getting prosecuted for tax avoidance...
- ojm 9y ago
  > Australians generally carry little to no cash around I haven’t had cash in my wallet for a few weeks now. Apple Pay or PayPass/Wave for even small amounts is fine. They just simply lose my business now if they don’t take card. And lots of the population is moving this way. The old cash only to avoid taxes is only good if you actually make a decent income to avoid said taxes.
- Andrenid 9y ago
  I haven't carried cash or wallet for about a year now. All I use is my phone (CommBank app, which uses PayPass network). Whether it's a coffee, snack for my kid, weekly shopping or a night out, I can barely even remember the times I've been caught out. Maybe twice in a year. Only times I take my wallet out the door is if I'm driving (I live in Melbourne and mostly walk or take trams) or going to the Doctors or something that requires ID/Medicare. Food trucks, weekend markets, everyone has an EFTPOS/MPOS or CommBank tablet in their business now.
  - hug 9y ago
    Out of curiosity, where do you keep your myki? It's the one thing that ties me to carrying around a thing that can hold my cards. I don't carry cash, and quite often don't even carry my wallet, but I need somewhere to stash my myki if I'm taking the train & tram to work. Given that it may have anywhere between $100 and $1500 worth of value on it at a time, I don't really just want to throw it in a pocket.
- dm8 9y ago
  I think your parent poster was stposting. I doubt Ola will allow cash payments in Aus. In India lot of people carry cash hence they allow cash payments from what I've heard.
- flukus 9y ago
  I think that's just you. Most people I know still pay for anything small (like lunch or a taxi) in cash. I've been using it more lately because it's the only payment form with any type of anonymity.
dm8 9y ago
This forum is not like reddit for snarky/sarcastic comments. OLA folks are smart enough to cater to each individual local market. And all the drivers will be from local cities there.

thelittleone 9y ago

In case, like me, you're unfamiliar with the term "Upstart" in this context. I found a few vague definitions that boil down to: Startups are entrepreneurial businesses that start with external funding. Upstarts are businesses that start without significant external funding.

_emacsomancer_ 9y ago
Not the init daemon?
hayksaakian 9y ago
I'm under the impression they're using the 'dictionary definition' rather than a specialized jargon noun a person who has risen suddenly from a humble position to wealth, power, or a position of consequence. http://www.dictionary.com/browse/upstart http://www.dictionary.com/browse/upstart
- paulddraper 9y ago
  Yeah, it's just the dictionary definition; the little guy trying to become big. It's a "start up", but that term is a bit ambiguous.
maxxxxx 9y ago
Doesn't "upstart" have a slightly negative connotation?
- prawn 9y ago
  Not particularly. Most would interpret it here as "plucky". Small player tackling bigger players, having to work a bit harder and smarter, etc.
  - maxxxxx 9y ago
    Interesting. I thought this word is often used by incumbents to look down at the newcomer. English is not my first language so it's good to learn these subtleties.

manojlds 9y ago

Ola has been a pretty interesting company. They have tried a lot of things like integrating auto ricks into their network (which Uber has copied now), including Wifi, on board entertainment, pool pass, membership rates etc. They even had boat service when Chennai (my city) was flooded. I wish them good luck!

clay_to_n 9y ago
In India, Ola also seems to have nicer car models than Uber, at least at the cheapest price point without sharing your ride with a stranger. Coupled with the wi-fi and the entertainment system (to put on whatever of the limited Apple Music set you choose) made most of my friends in Bangalore prefer it.
- what_ever 9y ago
  Ola also always more expensive than Uber when I was in India for a few weeks. And another anecdotal feedback is all of my friends felt Uber had better crop of drivers and service than Ola.
  - manojlds 9y ago
    I am the grand parent poster - have stopped using Ola as Uber drivers are more predictable. Also they have weird KYC requirements and wanted to send physical documents for Ola Money, blocking my money without that.
    - Brajeshwar 9y ago
      And that one. I did my PayTM KYC long before Aadhaar became the silver bullet. PayTM have the ₹10,000 limit per month without the KYC and my Uber bill usually got exhausted by the middle of the month. Heck, I can use the same PayTM balance to eat corn on the streets.
  - Brajeshwar 9y ago
    Personally, I agree with this. Never had a good experience with Ola (tried few times). Been riding with Uber since its introduction in India, starting with the very limited/costly option and now the most optimal "Premier". Never used sharing, so no experience with that. I usually talk to the drivers; they tend to drive for both Ola and Uber. Most of them seem to have a better earning with Uber. One of the key thing limiting me even trying Ola is that they have their own in-house Payment/Wallet system and no integration with a more common one such as PayTM. With Uber, I can PayTM as my default and do not worry about Credit Card PIN -- just ride, thank the driver and walk out. Nonetheless, I would still wish Ola the very best. We need more competition and even better services from all providers.

throwaway2312 9y ago

One excellent feature OLA has is giving your unique OTP to drivers before they start your ride. This prevents stupid cases on drivers picking up the wrong "John" "Dave" during peak times or outside popular venues.

ojm 9y ago

It’s nice to get some competition for Uber. In Melbourne we now have Taxify, Uber and GoCatch. A forth in the mix would be great.

siquick 9y ago

(Sydney resident) Taxify launched here in December with 50% off rides, people jumped on board and ditched Uber. 50% rides ended - everyone went back to Uber, including myself. Can't seen this ending any differently unless Ola is significantly cheaper. ____ Just tried to sign up for Ola and they couldn't even send me the verification text to sign up with.

robryan 9y ago
It keeps Uber honest. I have no idea at any time if Uber surge pricing is reasonable, being able to check against another app will help.
- siquick 9y ago
  Don't get me wrong, I'm happy that there is competition but the vast majority of people just care about a car that turns up on time and doesn't cost them a fortune. If Taxify/Ola aren't doing anything majorly different from Uber then there's no reason for people to switch away from a service that proven to work.
  - darklajid 9y ago
    Anecdotally Singapore has (local) Grab and Uber. People seem to use both, I personally made far better experiences with Grab. Superficially they're the same, still there seems to be room for both and I personally prefer the Uber alternative more.
- janetdrscott 9y ago
  “Is reasonable”? It’s an algorithm in place for when demand outstrips supply.
jpatokal 9y ago
Counter-anecdote: when Taxify started up, it was impossible to hail them where I lived in the Inner West. But I grabbed on yesterday on the way to the airport, it was at my house in 2 minutes, and the driver told me he now drives for Taxify exclusively -- it's still a bit cheaper for riders and the drivers make more. All that said, when Uber surges hard, finding a Taxify car is impossible since most drivers use both. Anyway, I've signed up for Ola and just got coupons for three free rides up to $25. The more competition and the larger the bonfires of VC money, the merrier!

Proven 9y ago

For what it’s worth, their pedestrian detection algo might be better

jamez1 9y ago

Some stats: Taxify has had 130k downloads in the last 4 months. Ola is at 24k for about 1 month. Far cry from Uber which does that in almost 2 days

jpatokal 9y ago
Those are worldwide stats, no? That's not going to tell you much about Australian ride sharing.

finebalance 9y ago

In the Indian market, Ola does a few things better than Uber. For example, they have an OTP, which is a 4-digit numerical code you need to provide to the driver at the start of every ride. In a low-trust market like India, this is instrumental in helping certain people pre-pay for this sort of service. Secondly, they've long had more options than Uber in types of service they provide: ie, rickshaw, car rentals, etc. And finally, they've also recently introduced ola credit, which is really convenient for me as I take short, low-cost rides to and fro work, and credit is sufficient to allow me to pay at one go at the end of the week. There is a perception that Ola has a lower quality of drivers in the Indian market, but I doubt such a thing would be replicated in Australia. That said, I've gotten quite a few stinkers from both services, so I'm sure that the bias in Indian middle/upper-middle classes against native companies plays strongly into the perception of Ola drivers as worse than Uber.

darklajid 9y ago
Spend four weeks in India (Pune) recently. Ola was by far more interesting and cheaper, but.. unavailable to me without local colleagues helping me. To sign up you needed an Indian mobile number (I brought a German and a Singaporean..). Unfortunate. Uber in India was god awful.
simula67 9y ago
Why do you think India is a low trust market ?
- HaoZeke 9y ago
  Because it's a country dedicated to a short con followed by marriage to a young uneducated woman and more kids than common sense.
  - tfuop 9y ago
    Toilet paper wipers of western countries have their perception thus moulded by mainstream media...
  - 9y ago

jaimex2 9y ago

I'm guessing drivers will sign up to this along with Uber, Taxify and GoCatch and keep flicking between them or just use a bunch of phones with one acting as a hotspot. Which ever pays the best will take priority.

srean 9y ago

Ola drivers are probably not on HN, which is a shame because that would have revealed a more balanced picture. Ola drivers are often dealt a short end of the stick by Ola. Ola knows this, and gets away with it because many of the drivers come from a financial background where they do not have much of a choice. Drivers face ridiculous delays in getting paid their share of the ride, that is, if they get paid at all. You would often encounter Ola drivers insisting on getting paid by cash rather than Ola money. Ola's software backend leaves a lot to be desired, losing track of money is quite frequent, used to be routine before. I don't expect commentary from Ola drivers but hope some Ola engineers will comment on their engineering backend and culture: lack of work life balance, insane hours, continuous firefights to keep their service afloat, just about barely in spite of being staffed by way more engineers than Uber India. Someone privy to the details claimed -- "The marvel is not that the bear dances well, but that the bear dances at all." I am not sure if things have changed, they are rolling in so much investor money that they really don't have strong incentives to.