Say hello to Ola, the latest taxis to hit the capital's streets

Every Friday, Maddyness curates articles from other outlets on a topic that is driving the headlines. This week, we share some articles about the UK car-sharing market and the launch of Ola in London.

Temps de lecture : 2 minutes

Rise of ride-sharing competition with Ola entering London

On Monday, Ola, the Indian ride-hailing firm started operating in London. The car-sharing company initially operated in Cardiff in 2018 and has since developed in other UK locations. Ola says it already has three million customers across the UK and hopes to be number one in London within a year. Read the full article on BBC

Ola has a TfL 15-month license to be renewed by the end of 2020

Ola's licence, given by TfL will be valid for 15 months and will be renegotiated before the end of the year. The tech company, which is valued at around $10 billion, received a license to operate in the city from Transport for London in July last year and says it has spent the last few months making sure it was ready to operate in the capital. Read the full article on Evening Standard

A journalist took a ride with Ola and compares the service to Uber

A Business Insider contributor published a review after taking a ride with Ola and found out how different it is from its competitors Uber or Kapten. The journalist had taken many Ola rides during vacations in India where Ola is more popular than Uber. Read the review on Business Insider

Ola comes at the time when TfL decided not to renew Uber's license

Transport for London’s (TfL) decision not to renew Uber’s operating licence late last year split commuters down the middle. Critics of the decision said it sent a message that London is closed to innovation. Read the full article on City A.M.

Ola's launch backed by a multi-million-pound marketing campaign

Media Agency Group created a teaser campaign launched across London with the full campaign featuring the strapline ‘Change is Coming’ - targeting commuters, shoppers, tourists and lifestyle audiences. Ola has already been working with the agency to build his brand in Bristol, Exeter, Liverpool, Bath, Reading and Cardiff. Read the article on Prolific North

“The Media Agency Group has played an important role in the progress Ola has made in the UK. We look forward to building on our success by offering a differentiated service to Londoners, focused on quality, safety and reliability.” - Arun Srinivas, COO of Ola.