New companies target Budapest’s Uber gap

Competition

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Just a few days after U.S.-based ride-sharing company Uber pulled out of Budapest due to stricter regulations, new companies are eyeing the gap Uber left behind, according to reports. Estonian Taxify has announced a launch in August, while a Hungarian app may be launched within a few days.

A Hungarian company, previously a sub-contractor for Uber in Hungary, is planning to launch a mobile application for its services in the upcoming days, Hungarian daily Magyar Idők reported today. 

The name of the company has not yet been revealed, but it is believed to circumvent the strict rules on providing taxi services in Hungary by renting vehicles to passengers. The company is foreseen operating its service with a small number of drivers and is expected to demand higher fares than Uber, but lower than traditional Hungarian taxis, the paper reported.

However, the Hungarian company is not the only one planning to fill the hole Uber left behind, as Estonian competitor Taxify has announced the launch of a service in Hungary in August, Hungarian online daily napi.hu reported.

Taxify, which has Skype and many other giants as investors, promises to deliver the same technology and concept that Uber offered, while complying with all the relevant Hungarian regulations. Its mobile applications are available for Android and iOs mobile phones.

Uber decided to temporarily halt services in Hungary after the government, pressurized by taxi driversʼ demonstrations, approved strict regulations related to Uber that for all intents and purposes would have turned participating vehicles into taxis.

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