Panic Button

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, The British taxi app market stepped up a gear with the introduction of the Indian company Ola services in London.

The ride-hailing company began operating in Cardiff in 2018 and has since spread to other UK locations.

It has its sights trained on American rivals Uber , the appeal against a decision by the end of the London license after repeated safety deficiencies.

But an expert from the industry as a "winner-take-all" market, can only be profitable as a monopoly business.

Ola says, it already has three million customers in the UK and hopes to be The Number one in London within a year.

it is the only Challenger is not, However, have moved in since.

So, what are Ola chances of knocking your competitors? And how he compared with other services?

What is The State of the market?

Ola services in London began on Monday, and the license is initially until the end of 2020.

It already offers its services in large parts of the country, including seven major UK cities and towns: bath, Birmingham, Bristol, Cardiff, Exeter, Liverpool and reading.

in the UK there are now over a dozen app-based ways to book a Taxi.

Uber has more registered drivers in London, than any of its competitors

Some work with traditional licensed taxi drivers and are only used as an alternative to a phone call. But most of them are hoping to oust Uber from building their own networks of drivers.

Uber is still in operation in London, after an appeal against the decision not to renew his license.

But like its gloomy long-term prospects seem, it still has The Advantage of brand recognition, and it still has more registered drivers in London, than any of its competitors.

Uber has to 45,000 drivers in the capital, as against 35,000 of his closest rival, stud. Ola the 25,000-driver set in London, while another contender, Kapten, has 20,000.

What does Ola say?

Ola head of international, Simon Smith , told the BBC: "We are confident that we are the market leader in London within a year. "

He said The Number of London, the loaded had was the company of the app so far, "in the six figures", and stressed that Ola was "very focused on safety and reliability".

"It's in our DNA to always follow The Law , whether in Birmingham, Brisbane or Bangalore," he added.

Mr Smith said Ola has the whole of the United Kingdom cover: "The only limit to the pace of expansion in the UK, how quickly we the respective licenses can get. "

And what makes you so confident?

The Indian company is clearly striving to learn from The Experience of Uber , was reprimanded for failing to screen its drivers correctly, potentially putting the passengers in danger.

Ola has announced a series of safety features, including one that tracks the driver's route and flags until there are no "irregular vehicle activity". The app also features a "Panic Button " that the user can press if something goes wrong.

The company also bars drivers with More Than six penalty points on your license.

And it is trying to rectify the brand awareness problem with an elaborate advertising campaign.

What do analysts think?

Transport commentator Christian Wolmar is deeply skeptical about the entire ride-hailing sector, he believes the model is a non-sustainable business.

He told the BBC that Ola, Uber and other companies was little offered that is not already by existing minicab companies, or licensed taxi drivers.

"you have flooded the market, spending huge amounts of money, and the only way you can win is the creation of a monopoly, which allows you to control The Price ," he said.

"Clearly, this is their strategy to wipe out The Competition . "

Mr Wolmar in the comparison of the current free-for-all in the ride-hailing market in the deregulation of the UK-buses in the 1980s, which saw The Brief rise of small operators such as "Mr Bloggs buses run down Sheffield High Street".

But in the end, he said, the all were bought from the small players from the larger firms, the "carved" local monopolies.

Ride-hailing services were popular with Young People , because they were cheap, he said. "But this may not be the Last . "

transport for london, uber, companies, transport

Source of news: bbc.com