Uber's operations may be back to normal after police raid, but its number of affiliated drivers seemed to have decreased. (Photo : Reuters)
Chinese web services firm Baidu is reportedly planning to invest in Uber, an American taxi service and rideshare company, to give the latter a boost in its Asia expansion starting in China, according to a source familiar with the matter.
The five year old firm will be receiving both cash and non-cash assets. Baidu's investment can amount up to $600 million, according to a report from China National Radio.
The investment from the Beijing-based online firm will give Uber a piece of the Chinese market, which is mostly dominated by online commerce giant Alibaba Group and investment holding firm Tencent Holdings Ltd., which has many subsidiaries, including entertainment, media, and mobile and Internet services. In a LinkedIn post from Uber on July 1, the firm said that it will expand in China and will recruit in 14 of its cities.
RHB Research Institute analyst Li Yujie said that Uber will benefit from Baidu as it has years of experience in the Chinese market.
"Baidu is trying to promote its mobile payment system, Uber would help it gain more traffic and boost its location-based services," said Li.
The Chinese web service firm is expected to announce an investment with an American start up on December 17, according to Baidu spokesman Kaiser Kuo.
There were no further details given regarding the investment.
Uber recently completed its December funding which put its value at $40 billion. A representative from the San Francisco-based firm said that Uber may raise more value up to $600 million if more investors decide to invest.
The car service app recently went under fire as many filed lawsuits against it and was banned by several cities, including Delhi, where a woman who used Uber was allegedly raped by the cab driver.
