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The Ministry of Consumer Affairs had issued notices to Ola and Uber, seeking clarification on alleged “differential pricing” based on type of mobile phone used by customers to book rides.
Ola, Uber Deny Bias In Phone Model-Based Pricing (Photo: X/Uber_India)
A day after the Centre served notices to Ola and Uber over smartphone-based “differential pricing”, the cab aggregators on Friday rejected the allegation, stating that they do not set fares on the basis of the user’s phone model.
This comes after the Ministry of Consumer Affairs sent them notices, seeking clarification on reports that alleged that the cab aggregators charged differently for the same trip based on whether the customer booked the rides on an iPhone or an Android device.
What Did Ola And Uber Say?
Dismissing the allegations, the cab aggregators said that they were committed to resolving any “misunderstandings” regarding the issue.
Ola said that the company has a “homogenous pricing structure” for all customers. “we do not differentiate based on the operating system of the user’s cellphone for identical rides,” Ola said in a statement.
“We have clarified the same to the CCPA today, and we will work with them to clear any misunderstanding in this regard,” the company spokesperson added.
In a statement, an Uber spokesperson told Reuters that the company does not set prices based on the rider’s phone manufacturer.
“We look forward to working with the CCPA to clear up any misunderstanding,” the spokesperson said.
According to Reuters, Apple and Google have yet not responded to its requests for comments on the matter.
What Did The Government Say On ‘Differential Pricing’?
Consumer Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi on Thursday said that the CCPA had issued notices to the cab aggregators over the “differential pricing” to book rides, and further said that he would also ask the CCPA to look into alleged same practices used by other sectors, including food delivery and online ticket-booking apps.
The Minister had earlier described the differential pricing as an “unfair trade practice” which was a “blatant disregard” for the rights of the consumers.
The matter had gained attention after a Delhi-based entrepreneur recently shared his findings on alleged differential pricing by Ola and Uber. In a series of X posts, he highlighted the variations in fares across devices and battery levels. This follows a similar incident in December when an X user shared a purported photo showing different Uber fares on two phones for the same destination.