Govt may make private ride-sharing no-profit no-loss service; WhatsApp payment likely by year-end

Transport ministry wants states to get revenue from private ride-sharing. WhatsApp to launch payment business by the end of the year. 

Private ride-sharing may be made no profit, no loss

The ministry of road transport and highways has firmed up draft guidelines for ride-sharing/carpooling by private car owners, according to a report by The Economic Times. 

The centre wants the carpooling business to be done on a no-profit-no-loss basis, the report added.

The new guidelines include know your customer (KYC) for users and limiting the maximum number of rides taken per day to four, the report said.

Carpooling apps like Quick Ride and BlaBlaCar will have to address the issues and adjust the app accordingly. Cab aggregators such as Uber and Ola will need to develop a separate platform to allow pooling by private vehicle owners since it is not possible with their existing setup, the report said.

The new guidelines will also ensure that the states get some revenue from carpooling, it added.

WhatsApp payment services by the end of the year: Abhijit Bose, WhatsApp India head 

WhatsApp’s payment services will be rolled out in India by the end of the year, Abhijit Bose, head of WhatsApp India, told Economic Times in an interview.

Bose said the company’s goal is to enable end-to-end communication cycle between small businesses and customers. “Payment is just one more step in how businesses interact with users,” Bose said.

“62% of small and medium businesses in India have told us that WhatsApp business helps them increase sales and is essential for running their business," he added.

Delhi HC rules in favour of GrabOn in trademark case

The Delhi High Court has ruled in favour of  Hyderabad-based coupons and daily deals startup GrabOn against renting portal GrabOnRent in the trademark infringement case.

The Hyderabad-based platform claimed new users used to often get confused between the names GrabOn and GrabOnRent, which resulted in the wrong addressal of customer reviews, feedback and queries, GrabOn said in a statement.

GrabOn also claimed that the Bengaluru-based platform has been using its brands’ keywords on Google AdWords with nefarious intent of benefiting from better ranks and brand positioning.

“'I’m pleased with the quick,  resolution we got out of this lawsuit. It takes an immense amount of effort, time and capital to build a brand like ours. Customer goodwill is what we pride ourselves on; when our registered trademark’s reputation is misused or tampered with, our brand identity is compromised and as an entrepreneur and founder it is really very painful. I hope such instances can be avoided by others in the future, not only in our line of business but in the entire start-up ecosystem,” said Ashok Reddy, founder and chief executive officer, GrabOn.