The leading ride-sharing app in China, Didi Kuaidi, has stated that its service of Didi Chauffeur is getting more than half a million ride requests on a daily basis. The service has only been available for three months, and Didi itself is a newcomer to the ride-requesting industry. Meanwhile, the world’s most popular ride-sharing Service, Uber, is having a hard time getting into China.
The Didi Chauffeur services is marketed towards people who shouldn’t drive because they are intoxicated or sick. The service helps car owners locate a qualified driver who will drive their vehicle for them. The person requesting the service is charged a fixed fee for the first ten kilometers before additional rates kick in.
Currently the service is available in more than 200 cities in China, and it has over 1.5 million registered drivers. Didi Chauffeur currently controls 70% of the Chinese market for chauffeur services.
This is a big dent for the services of popular ride-requesting service, which is said to be the most widely-used ride-requesting app in the entire world. Uber has had a hard time breaking into the lucrative Chinese market because of the success of Didi.
The Didi Chauffeur service is just another way that Didi has an edge over Uber in the world’s most populated country. Didi is also starting to confront Uber on a global scale, as the company has purchased stakes in regional rivals of Uber, such as Singapore’s Grabtaxi.
Didi Kuaidi has been working to expand the amount of services that it offers. This year, the company began providing customers with minibuses and other special vehicles. The company also rebranded itself in order to distance itself from being seen as an illegal taxi service.
Additionally, Didi has expanded its Didi Test Drive program into six cities across China. This service provides a door-to-door car testing program, in which users can try out various new and used models of vehicles.
Didi Kuaidi is relatively new to the ride-requesting industry. The company was created earlier this year in February when two major Chinese ride-sharing services teamed up in a merger.
Needless to say, Uber has some very stiff competition in certain parts of the world. If Didi keeps up this level of success, Uber might never be able to fully break into China.
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