Easy Taxi MD wishes GrabTaxi
well amid its latest funding, reiterating the importance of market
growth and fair play in the taxi app industry
Not many leaders are gracious
enough to congratulate their competitors on receiving funding.
Jianggan Li, Managing Director of Rocket Internet’s Easy Taxi, is
one exception.
Managing DIrector of Easy
Taxi, Jianggang LiManaging DIrector of Easy Taxi, Jianggang
Li
Li firmly believes that GrabTaxi‘s funding round, which was
undisclosed, but rumoured to be US$10 million, will go a long way
towards improving the taxi app marketplace, spurring development
and ensuring consumers get a better product. “Congratulations to
Grab Taxi! Easy Taxi is happy that more investment is being
committed to the development of this market place, which will
eventually benefit both drivers and consumers,” he said.
In a similar tone, last year,
amid the launch of Easy Taxi in Philippines, Managing Director for
Southeast Asia, Mario Berta shared that competitors help to educate
consumers in an innovative industry.
“I believe that having up to
three [competing] apps in one market is good, as it will educate
the market (passengers, drivers and taxi companies),” Berta said,
“Every Rocket Internet venture in this region has disrupt the
market: we created entire ecosystems in countries that did not know
the existence of e-commerce before, so for us having someone that
educates before us is a good thing as will save us time and
money.”
Meanwhile, Li said that
EasyTaxi will be expanding to two more Southeast Asian countries
soon. “As the world’s biggest taxi app and with the backing from
Rocket Internet, Easy Taxi is focused on growth and customer
service,” he noted, “As we speak, we are starting operations in two
more countries in the Southeast Asia region, including a very big
neighbour of Singapore. By end of this month, Easy Taxi will be
present in 30 countries, including all the major markets in
Southeast Asia.”
Interestingly, in a final
note, Li seeks to emphasise the importance of fair play and healthy
competition in the taxi app scene. ”While we are growing
aggressively, we make sure that we adhere to the highest level of
integrity and ethical standards,” he said, “We have not engaged and
will never engage in any anti-competitive activity. And we
sincerely hope that all the players in the industry do the
same.”
While it may seem tempting to
dismiss the above as a warning or as an absolution, given that Easy
Taxi has pushed ahead with moves to increase market share such as
offering its service for free in Singapore, a sincere appeal to
fairness and integrity looks to be more accurate. After all, the
taxi booking app market is still in its infancy, with many
countries in SEA like Indonesia yet to enjoy its
benefits.
