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Uber’s New Rival in Australia: An Indian Upstart

nytimes.com

11–20 of 71 posts

Re: Uber’s New Rival in Australia: An Indian Upstart

#11
post #4

Australians get ready for questions/requests like a. Can you please cancel OLA ride and book a ride on Uber or vice versa? #incentives #UberOLATwosome b. Cash or OLA Money?

They'll struggle to get anywhere asking for cash. Australians generally carry little to no cash around

In Melbourne there are so many cash only food places that you do need to carry cash - or at least know where the nearest atm is.

Re: Uber’s New Rival in Australia: An Indian Upstart

#12
post #9

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Really? As someone who has spent a long time in New Zealand it was striking to me how many places you needed cash for in Australia. EFTPOS is not ubiquitous there like it is here.

New Zealand for whatever reason I used cash a lot too. Australia you can pay stuff for small sums like $1 on card almost everywhere so no point to carry cash most of the time

You can do the same in NZ - it’s called eftpos / PayPass (PayWave in Aus). Cash is rarely needed in NZ if you’re a local.

If you only carry credit cards though you’re going to need some cash.

Re: Uber’s New Rival in Australia: An Indian Upstart

#13
post #4

Earlier quoted context omitted.

They'll struggle to get anywhere asking for cash. Australians generally carry little to no cash around

In Melbourne there are so many cash only food places that you do need to carry cash - or at least know where the nearest atm is.

I'd say those businesses will have to evolve or die out. There is a great Japanese place in our town that I stopped frequenting purely because they didn't have an EFTPOS machine, and I often have to cash on me when returning from a customer visit etc. and I wanted a snack to bring home. Since they (finally) installed one after new owners took over, I go back there frequently now.

With PayWave becoming so popular for even $1 transactions at the counter by literally waving your debit card at a machine, I haven't carried significant cash in my wallet for years now.

Re: Uber’s New Rival in Australia: An Indian Upstart

#14

In case, like me, you're unfamiliar with the term "Upstart" in this context. I found a few vague definitions that boil down to: Startups are entrepreneurial businesses that start with external funding. Upstarts are businesses that start without significant external funding.

Doesn't "upstart" have a slightly negative connotation?

Re: Uber’s New Rival in Australia: An Indian Upstart

#15
post #5

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.

Re: Uber’s New Rival in Australia: An Indian Upstart

#16

Earlier quoted context omitted.

In Melbourne there are so many cash only food places that you do need to carry cash - or at least know where the nearest atm is.

I'd say those businesses will have to evolve or die out. There is a great Japanese place in our town that I stopped frequenting purely because they didn't have an EFTPOS machine, and I often have to cash on me when returning from a customer visit etc. and I wanted a snack to bring home. Since they (finally) installed one after new owners took over, I go back there frequently now. With PayWave becoming so popular for…

With all due respect, I'd say this is definitely a product of your specific location/life circumstances. I live in one of the biggest cities in North America and "cash only" is not a hurdle for restaurants here.

Re: Uber’s New Rival in Australia: An Indian Upstart

#17

Earlier quoted context omitted.

In Melbourne there are so many cash only food places that you do need to carry cash - or at least know where the nearest atm is.

I'd say those businesses will have to evolve or die out. There is a great Japanese place in our town that I stopped frequenting purely because they didn't have an EFTPOS machine, and I often have to cash on me when returning from a customer visit etc. and I wanted a snack to bring home. Since they (finally) installed one after new owners took over, I go back there frequently now. With PayWave becoming so popular for…

When they say “cash only” everyone seems to understand it means “we dodge our taxes”. But the food is usually pretty cheap. I’d say they probably won’t evolve unless they start getting prosecuted for tax avoidance...

Re: Uber’s New Rival in Australia: An Indian Upstart

#18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'd say those businesses will have to evolve or die out. There is a great Japanese place in our town that I stopped frequenting purely because they didn't have an EFTPOS machine, and I often have to cash on me when returning from a customer visit etc. and I wanted a snack to bring home. Since they (finally) installed one after new owners took over, I go back there frequently now. With PayWave becoming so popular for…

With all due respect, I'd say this is definitely a product of your specific location/life circumstances. I live in one of the biggest cities in North America and "cash only" is not a hurdle for restaurants here.

> With all due respect, I'd say this is definitely a product of your specific location/life circumstances.

Well, we are talking about Australia... I don't think the poster was talking about the whole world.

Re: Uber’s New Rival in Australia: An Indian Upstart

#19
post #9

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Really? As someone who has spent a long time in New Zealand it was striking to me how many places you needed cash for in Australia. EFTPOS is not ubiquitous there like it is here.

New Zealand for whatever reason I used cash a lot too. Australia you can pay stuff for small sums like $1 on card almost everywhere so no point to carry cash most of the time

edited parent - I meant EFTPOS wasn't as ubiquitous in AU as it was in NZ.

Re: Uber’s New Rival in Australia: An Indian Upstart

#20

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'd say those businesses will have to evolve or die out. There is a great Japanese place in our town that I stopped frequenting purely because they didn't have an EFTPOS machine, and I often have to cash on me when returning from a customer visit etc. and I wanted a snack to bring home. Since they (finally) installed one after new owners took over, I go back there frequently now. With PayWave becoming so popular for…

With all due respect, I'd say this is definitely a product of your specific location/life circumstances. I live in one of the biggest cities in North America and "cash only" is not a hurdle for restaurants here.

Thank you for enlightening us on the Australian market from North America.
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