In what may be one of the biggest buyouts in the history of food delivery apps, food delivery giant Zomato India has acquired the business of Uber Eats India. This gives Uber 9.99% ownership in Zomato's stock, in a deal that is reported to have cost Zomato USD 350 million. Uber Eats in India will discontinue operations and redirect restaurants, delivery partners and users of the Uber Eats app to the Zomato app. This change will be effective from Tuesday, January 21, 2020.
The announcement was made on Tuesday on Uber Eats' official Twitter handle, wherein they talked about how they began their food delivery journey in India in 2017. Take a look:
"Through this deal, Uber Eats India users now become Zomato users. I want to assure Uber Eats India users that their user experience won't be compromised in any way - if at all, the scale gives us higher density to make our deliveries faster. With Zomato, you'll realise that we share a common love for great food," wrote Deepinder Goyal, Founder and CEO of Zomato on his blog on the website. Zomato India too acknowledged the buyout on their Twitter handle:
He also said, "We are proud to have pioneered restaurant discovery and to have created a leading food delivery business across more than 500 cities in India. This acquisition significantly strengthens our position in the category." He shared a tweet on his Twitter handle, which captured the essence of the deal, saying that the two apps were 'better together'. See the tweet here:
Dara Khosrowshahi, CEO of Uber, said, "Our Uber Eats team in India has achieved an incredible amount over the last two years, and I couldn't be prouder of their ingenuity and dedication. India remains an exceptionally important market to Uber and we will continue to invest in growing our local Rides business, which is already the clear category leader. We have been very impressed by Zomato's ability to grow rapidly in a capital-efficient manner and we wish them continued success."
Twitter erupted with reactions on the announcement as well. Some users hailed the move, saying that food delivery would now be less of a hassle since there would be only two apps to choose from. Other Twitterati said that they actually preferred Uber Eats for the wonderful deals and offers that it used to provide to users. Twitter users also took a dig at food delivery app Swiggy, saying that it might be next in Zomato's line of buyouts. See the reactions here:
Like it or not, Uber Eats India is now a thing of the past. Let's see how the competition pans out in the coming days between the remaining few food delivery giants.