Uber cabs have partnered with Airtel to set up WiFi hotspots in each of its cabs. The facility has been launched in Mumbai and will be rolled out in other cities soon. Uber will pay Airtel for the bandwidth consumed. The cab hailing service company has also tied up with Airtel to give its riders the option of paying for their rides through the telecom operator’s mobile wallet – Airtel Money.

Uber has operations in more than 60 countries and about 330 cities, of which 18 are in India. The company had launched operations in India less than two years ago and now has about 150,000 driver partners.

Under the terms, Bharti Airtel is offering its 4G MiFi (mobile WiFi) devices to Uber vehicles, while drivers get subsidised mobile devices and data plans. Uber will offer discounts to Airtel customers, including ₹500 off on their first ride using Airtel Money. Earlier this month, Airtel – the world’s third largest mobile services provider by subscribers – launched commercial 4G services across 296 towns in the country.

UBER

• Uber Technologies Inc. is an American international transportation network company headquartered in San Francisco, California.
• The company develops, markets and operates the Uber mobile app, which allows consumers with smartphones to submit a trip request which is then routed to Uber drivers who use their own cars.
• Uber was founded as “UberCab” by Travis Kalanick and Garrett Camp in 2009.
• The legality of Uber has been challenged by governments and taxi companies, who allege that its use of drivers who are not licensed to drive taxicabs is unsafe and illegal.