OLA Indian mobile app announced the launch of ‘ Ola Offline ’ across the leading metros in India. The step from the leading cab provider is to ensure continued access to mobility. This new feature allows the customers to book a cab even in the absence of internet on their smartphones.
A pilot run has been held from June in small towns and cities. Need for mobility even when the internet is unavailable made a way to introduce this innovative feature in India. Ola plans to start the feature with four metro cities and to roll out in the rest of the towns in coming weeks.
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Considering the more than 46 crore people with internet connection in the country, but stills claim 34% of the whole population. A majority of the population struggles to get a proper data connection at all times even today. Many users often suffer poor data connectivity and running out of data. ‘Ola Offline’ aims to reach these people with an attempt to offer hassle-free access to Ola. The new feature will be available in all categories namely Micro, Mini, Prime, and Lux.
How Ola Offline works:
• The user will get two options ‘Retry’ or ‘Book via SMS’ in the absence of Internet connection while booking a cab through an app.
• Customers can select the ‘Book via SMS’ and a pre-entered text message will occur on their default messaging app requesting Ola to book a cab.
• The user will avail an SMS detailing the particulars of the nearest available cab among all categories.
• Driver details of the selected cab will be with be sent instantly by SMS.
• On the other hand, Driver will also receive contact information of the customer along with the triangulated GPS location.
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Features like ride details, SOS button, GPS tracking will be available for the user on the Ola app once after the Internet connection resumes.
Commenting on the innovative feature, “As the country ushers in the digital revolution with projects such as Digital India and Smart Cities, the way users experience technology is changing. While connectivity continues to be an infrastructural challenge, we are constantly building innovative technology that helps fill the gap, and the launch of the ‘Offline feature’ is a major step in that direction. We understand that while an Ola might be available around you, a working Internet connection might not always be. Ola Offline will now plug this gap.” Says, Ankit Bhati, CTO & Co-Founder, Ola.
The ‘Offline feature was piloted in small town markets like Nagpur and Indore and found a good acceptance from the consumers in the past few weeks. The feature will be rolled out in 102 cities where Ola operates
