“This year, we will push to increase our dispatch success rate and market share based on stable growth.”
“(Regarding collaboration with Naver) There’s nothing specific yet. We are meeting with a variety of corporations to establish partnerships.”
Song Jin-woo, general manager of Uber Taxi Korea, met with reporters on the 20th at The Plaza Hotel in Jung-gu, Seoul, to introduce the newly launched Uber for Business (U4B) service, stating the company will focus on increasing its market share this year. Regarding the recently rumored collaboration with Naver, he noted that discussions are ongoing.
U4B is Uber Taxi's global B2B service tailored for corporations. It offers services optimized for business travel, from vehicle requests for fieldwork and business trips to a simplified expense management system. When changing to a business profile during a trip, the amount will be automatically charged using a pre-set payment method, and receipts will be emailed at the end of the journey, making expense processing easy. Users can change their destination and add up to five stops during the trip.
Uber Taxi emphasized that more than half of the Fortune 500 companies, including Coca-Cola and Samsung, are using the U4B service, and 84% of the corporations utilizing the service have experienced reductions in travel expenses.
Uber Taxi also plans to introduce various services, including a new airport-specific service called 'Premier Van,' services specialized for leisure and travel, and family sharing features. General Manager Song stated, “We plan to launch the ‘Premier Van’ service for customers with a lot of luggage going to the airport within the first half of the year,” noting that they will strive to implement functions that meet demand in Korea from Uber's diverse offerings.
Uber Taxi will mark the first anniversary of rebranding its Korean operations next month. Previously, Uber established a joint venture named 'UT' with Tmap Mobility, a subsidiary of SK Square, upon entering the domestic market. However, in March of last year, it changed its brand to Uber Taxi and announced it would acquire all the equity held by Tmap in December.
General Manager Song noted, “Since last year’s rebranding, the number of foreign and young Korean customers has increased,” adding, “The biggest achievement last year was the significant rise in our dispatch success rate.” According to the company, the number of rides increased by more than 50% compared to the previous year, and the number of affiliated drivers has more than doubled. However, Song refrained from discussing specific market share targets.
Song said there are currently no specific arrangements regarding collaboration with Naver. Recently, it has been reported in the mobility industry that Uber is considering a plan to integrate Uber Taxi calls into Naver Maps, drawing attention to whether Uber and Naver could become formidable competitors against Kakao Mobility, which holds the top market position.
Song stated, “We are meeting with a variety of corporations for partnerships,” and added, “We are not limiting the target partners to a specific company; we are looking for ways to collaborate through more platform companies.”
In light of domestic mobility competitors facing government sanctions or legal battles, he noted, “As a player in the industry, we are monitoring the situation,” but added, “It seems there is no shift in (business) direction or any reflected benefits for Uber.”