Although an increasing number of taxis are equipped with embedded telematics units, this is being overshadowed by the rapid rise in popularity of smartphone-based taxi apps, which enable passengers to order a taxi and the driver receiving pick-up requests directly via their smartphone. According to the latest market study by ABI Research, most capital cities nowadays boast a number of smartphone-based taxi service apps. Some of the better known online services include Allocab, Hailo Cab, Uber Taxi, Easy Taxi, Kabbee, mytaxi, GetTaxi, Taxi.eu, Didi-Dache, Huaidi-Dache, MiniCabster, Chauffer-Prive.com, and Yongche. However, not all the smartphone software applications are the same, although the majority operate on a peer-to-peer basis -- thereby by-passing the traditional taxi companies. "Some, such as Hailo, work with the independent taxi drivers, but not the established taxi companies," said Gareth Owen, principal analyst at ABI Research . Others such as Uber compet...
TMT Market Research and Analysis