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TL;DR

Uber partners with Lyft, Didi Kuai-di, Ola, and GrabTaxi; plans to introduce color-coded ride system called SPOT.

Transcript

Uber wants to color code your next ride, yahoo messenger takes a giant leap into modern times, Facebook wants all y'all to start live broadcasting,and more... It's Thursday, December 3rd and this is Crunch Report. Four Uber rivals have decided to team up and fight the big guy. Lyft in the U.S., Didi Kuai-di in China, Ola in India and GrabTaxi in So... Read More

Key Insights

• 😷 Lyft, Didi Kuai-di, Ola, and GrabTaxi have partnered with the goal of expanding their services internationally and providing a seamless experience for customers.
• 🤲 Uber is developing SPOT, a color-coded ride system, to address the issue of passengers getting into the wrong Uber vehicle.
• 👥 Yahoo Messenger's revamped platform focuses on mobile, group messaging, and image sharing to attract users in a crowded messaging app market.
• 🎮 Facebook is testing its Live streaming video broadcasting feature with all users, allowing friends to receive notifications about broadcasts and replay videos.

Questions & Answers

Q: What is the purpose of the alliance between Lyft, Didi Kuai-di, Ola, and GrabTaxi?

The alliance aims to allow customers of each company to use their local apps to order transportation when traveling to other markets in the network. This partnership will enhance convenience and accessibility for customers.

Q: How does the color-coded ride system SPOT work?

SPOT is an LED light that drivers attach to their windshields, which can display various colors chosen by the passenger. Passengers can also hold down the corresponding button on their phone to help their driver locate them.

Q: Why is Yahoo Messenger targeting mobile messaging and group sharing?

Yahoo Messenger has revamped its platform to focus on mobile, group messaging, and image sharing in order to compete with other messaging apps like Facebook Messenger, WeChat, WhatsApp, and Viber.

Q: What additional features are offered by Yahoo Messenger?

Yahoo Messenger allows users to download original full-size photos, unsend messages before the recipient reads them, "like" messages, and support GIFs. Users can also log in with their phone number and find other Yahoo Messenger contacts from their address book.

Summary & Key Takeaways

• Four Uber competitors, Lyft, Didi Kuai-di, Ola, and GrabTaxi, have formed an alliance to work together on technology and services.

• Customers of each company will be able to order transportation using their local apps when traveling to other markets in the network.

• Uber is developing a color-coded ride system called SPOT to help passengers identify their assigned Uber vehicle.