Didi invests in rival Uber's competitors outside China, such as Lyft, GrabTaxi and, recently, India's Ola. (Photo : www.technologynewschina.com)
Taxi-hailing services provider Didi Kuaidi has announced on Monday, Aug. 17, that it is planning to offer designated driver services in 55 more cities in mainland China, as part of its service portfolio expansion, the Global Times reported.
Didi Kuaidi launched its designated driver services on July 28, after getting the support of domestic Internet giants Alibaba Group Holding and Tencent Holdings, aimed at people who do not want to drive their own cars after a night out drinking.
A statement sent to the Global Times said that following the expansion, the services of the company will be available in 80 cities nationwide with more than one million registered drivers.
The company said that before the end of the year they plan to expand their designated driver services to 100 cities nationwide.
"The company aims to build itself into a comprehensive neighborhood solutions provider, and launching designated driver services is a key step toward that target," Zhang Xu, an analyst at Beijing-based consultancy Analysys International, told the Global Times.
Analysts said that Didi Kuaidi is facing tough competition from apps like Edaijia and Aidaijia, both specializing in offering online designated driver services and have been focusing on the sector for more than three years.
Zhang, however, noted that compared with its rivals, Didi Kuaidi's major advantage is having the support of Alibaba and Tencent in the sector that demands huge input.
After launching a promotional campaign to gain users, Didi Kuaidi is set to waive the charge for designated driver services to less than 100 yuan ($15.64) in the next two weeks, where each user can enjoy the services for free twice a week.
Didi Kuaidi has secured $2 billion in July from major shareholders such as Alibaba and Tencent, as well as Temasek, a company based in Singapore.
