Uber has finally rolled out its Google maps integration in India. The feature was first launched in the US in May 2014, and now it seems to be working well in some Indian cities such as Delhi, Bangalore and Mumbai. Interestingly, Uber has not announced the news officially on its blog, but instead took to twitter to spread the word. The tweet was made from Uber’s Delhi account.
Talking about the integration, whenever users will type the destination in the browser search bar, they will also find an option to book a ride with Uber, which will be displayed in the public transportation panel. The feature shows an estimated pick up time, time left to destination and fare. Although the ride estimate is only shown for the Uber X services and not for the Uber Go services and Uber Black. However, to enjoy all these features, one has to install the Uber application on the phone.
The integration feature comes pretty handy keeping in mind that Uber is a Google Ventures-backed company and Google has also made an investment of $258 million in it. In November 2014, Uber had stated that the feature is currently active in over 30 cities around the world, however, none of the Indian cities made it to the list at that time.
Google locking horns with Uber?
According to some reports, Google is allegedly developing a cab-hailing service, which will be utilizing its driver-less car project. Earlier this month, Uber signed an exclusive deal with Carnegie Mellon University for the development of the Uber Advanced Technologies Center in Pittsburg. The research centre will be focusing primarily in the areas of mapping, car safety and autonomy technology.
Gotta love the sweet @Uber + @googlemaps integration: pic.twitter.com/rTpGYmvzZL
— Uber Delhi (@Uber_Delhi) February 6, 2015
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