Stalemate continues between Swiggy, Zomato and NRAI

The stalemate between restaurant body National Restaurants Association of India (NRAI) and online food aggregators like Swiggy and Zomato continues after a meeting between representatives of both sides on Friday.

Issues between Zomato on its premium membership program Zomato Gold and the association remains unresolved as NRAI has been pushing for a revision of the current terms of agreement for Gold.

“NRAI remains steadfast in its belief that Zomato Gold in its current form is not acceptable in either dine-in or delivery segment,” said an NRAI spokesperson in a statement. 

Anurag Katriar, executive director and CEO of deGustibus Hospitality, took over as the president of NRAI on Friday.

As part of the agreement between Zomato and NRAI following the first meeting on August 29, the Alibaba-backed company revised terms of use for customers of Zomato Gold, which came into effect on Sunday, September 15. 

The change includes capping the maximum number of Zomato Gold offers being redeemed per table to two and capping it to once a day per Gold membership.

"We continue to have discussions with the NRAI on all issues faced by the industry and are focused on providing solutions sustainable for all participants,” said a spokesperson for Zomato in an emailed response to queries sent by TechCircle. 

Following the Friday meeting, NRAI and membership and subscription players in the dine-in space like Dine Out, Nearbuy, Magicpin and Gourmet Passport have ironed out differences on discounting. According to the statement by NRAI, talks with Eazydiner are at an advanced stage and will be resolved soon. 

This is the second meeting between the representatives of food aggregation platforms and subscription service providers and NRAI in the aftermath of the #Logout campaign which was started a month back by NRAI to protest against thinning margins and rise in bargain hunters through deep discounts offered by these platforms.

As part of Friday’s meeting, Swiggy and Zomato presented NRAI with their revised terms of an agreement on delivery charges, data sharing and other aspects.

“NRAI plays an important role in our continued efforts to enable restaurant partners to grow sustainably while benefiting from the latest technology interventions. Our recent discussions on the various projects have been well received and have brought us one step closer to achieving our combined goals,"  a Swiggy spokesperson told TechCircle in an emailed statement.

NRAI also maintained that “since the desired changes are fairly large and significant, their total resolution may take some time.”