Daimler AG announced on Wednesday that it is expanding its business by joining the ride-sharing sector.
The German carmaker has acquired Germany-based Intelligent Apps GmbH and RideScout as part of its preparation. Apps GmbH operates the cab-booking app, Mytaxi.
"The acquisition of RideScout and Intelligent Apps pushes our global strategy a significant step forward," Robert Henrich, CEO at Daimler's moovel unit, said in an announcement. "We are investing further in the development and growth of urban mobility in North America, Germany and other parts of the world."
According to sources of the Wall Street Journal, Daimler allocated $100 million for the deal and had assigned its Moovel GmbH unit to finalize it. This group was consolidated by Daimler to concentrate on its mobile services such as the Car2Go GmbH. A spokeswoman for Moovel refused to talk about the deal.
Ride-sharing is becoming popular especially to urban consumers who are used to sharing movies, food, music and other services through the Internet. This consumer base realized that it is cheaper to share a ride than own a car, and the cost of ride-sharing is lower or almost the same as riding a cab.
RideScout is operating in 69 cities across North America and serves as a guide for people looking for transport options to reach their planned destination. The Mytaxi app, on the other hand, serves as a communication tool between passengers and taxi drivers. If Daimler could improve these services, it will undoubtedly become a serious competition for existing competitors Uber and Lyft.
Daimler clarified that the acquisition of the two apps will not disrupt the existing taxi industry. Reuters reported that the company wouldn't want to involve itself to a controversy that Uber experienced over its app.
Uber has faced opposition from taxi operators in different. Recently, a German court banned the use of UberPop, Uber's smartphone app, due to a pending case determining whether the use of the app is posing an unfair competition to other companies.
