Originally published on tech.sina.com.cn, 11/12/2014
A new investment case is shaking things up in the already dynamic taxi software industry. Not content to tailgate Alibaba and Tencent, informants say Baidu has determined to take the lead and will shortly announce its plans for strategic investment in global taxi business software, Uber 17. The amount to be invested is unknown.
According to sources, Uber will be a strategic partner for Baidu. Earlier this month, Uber announced it had raised $1.2 billion USD for a new round of financing. The company is valued at up to $40 billion.
Because Uber previously authorised the issue of new shares worth up to $1.8 billion, and has raised $1.2 billion thus far, Baidu's current stake in Uber is not more than $600 million. CEO Travis Kalanick issued a statement saying that the company has room for strategic investors to join.
Based on Baidu's real-time maps and mobile search platform and Uber's ambitions for further expansion into the Chinese market, the two sides came together naturally. This round of investment and the Baidu-Uber coupling means that domestic car/taxi software will have to square down against two giants, which may spark a new round of price wars.
Uber's domestic competitor, Taxi Drop (滴滴打车), have just announced receiving a $700 million investment, while, more broadly for Southeast Asian markets, Softbank's GrabTaxi has received $250 million in financing.
As of the time of publication, Baidu offered no response.
(Source)