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.
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.
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!
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.
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.
I have usually found Uber to be cheaper in Bangalore. Also in my experience, I find car/drivers better for Uber compared to Ola. I have never tried the wifi or entertainment systems.
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!
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.
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.
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.
Not really - rebel also has a slightly negative connotation.
How it sounds of depends if you are the empire, a Jedi or a sports fan.
In general I’ve seen ola fight tooth and nail against Uber by focusing on the vagaries and niches of the Indian market.
They took the fight to the a much stronger competitor. They couldn’t win on just funding advantages so kept carving out areas which Uber has not considered.
I’m betting Uber learnt a lot from that fight.
Let’s see how they fare in Australia. Wishing them
Well.
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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.
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.
Dead Comment
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.
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!
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.
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.
In Melbourne we now have Taxify, Uber and GoCatch.
A forth in the mix would be great.
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
Startups are entrepreneurial businesses that start with external funding.
Upstarts are businesses that start without significant external funding.
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
It's a "start up", but that term is a bit ambiguous.
How it sounds of depends if you are the empire, a Jedi or a sports fan.
In general I’ve seen ola fight tooth and nail against Uber by focusing on the vagaries and niches of the Indian market.
They took the fight to the a much stronger competitor. They couldn’t win on just funding advantages so kept carving out areas which Uber has not considered.
I’m betting Uber learnt a lot from that fight.
Let’s see how they fare in Australia. Wishing them Well.
Oxford dictionary definition #1: (derogatory) A person who has risen suddenly in rank or importance, especially one who behaves arrogantly.
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