Oyo Rooms has begun 2016 by expanding into unchartered waters – it has become the first Indian hotel aggregator to expand overseas. The company, which operated in only 3 Indian cities in 2015, now operates in 165 cities and has 4000 properties bearing its name.
Leading Chinese travel company Crip has invested $180 million into MakeMyTrip. Ctrip will invest this amount through convertible bonds. In addition, MakeMyTrip has granted Ctrip permission to acquire MakeMyTrip shares in the open market, so that combined with shares convertible under the convertible bonds, Ctrip may own up to 26.6% of MakeMyTrip’s outstanding shares.
After months of speculation, and repeated denials by both parties, Quikr has finally sealed the deal and acquired real estate portal Commonfloor. Reports of Quikr acquiring Commonfloor had been abuzz for a while but Commonfloor CEO had diligently rubbished them every time. However in a report on December 1, the deal was touted to be almost through.
After over a year of speculation, Netflix is all set for its India launch. The company has unveiled a list of plans that it will offer to its Indian viewers. And the prices are comparable to what users pay in the US. Netflix’s basic US plan costs $7.99, and its Indian counterpart will cost Rs. 500 per month. The Premium plan in India will cost Rs. 800.
A day-long congregation (kumbh) – the first of its kind – of startup stakeholders gets underway on January 16 in the Indian capital, New Delhi. Here’s a preview.
Realty portal Housing.com had been struggling with mounting losses when CEO Rahul Yadav was let go, documents filed by the company reveal. In FY 2014-2015, Housing recorded a loss of Rs. 279 crore. Its revenue in the same period was Rs. 12 crore. In comparison, competitor CommonFloor had revenues of Rs. 45 crore.
Freecharge founder Kunal Shah has been appointed as the Chairman of Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI). IAMAI is a not-for-profit industry body with a mandate is to expand and enhance the online and mobile value added services sectors.
The carpooling wave, partly spurred on by the Delhi government’s Odd-Even plan, is taking foot across the country. After starting off in Delhi, Uber has now launched UberCommute in Bangalore. Under this service, ordinary drivers will be able to offer their cars for pooling with people going their route.
Grocery delivery app Grofers’ ambitious expansion plans have hit a roadblock. After the company recently raised $120 million which saw its valuation rise threefold in less than a year, the company has decided to scale back its operations. It has shut down in operations in 9 Indian Tier 2 cities, including Ludhiana, Bhopal, Kochi, Coimbatore and Visakhapatnam.