Uber signs taxi deal to expand business in Italy

MILAN, May 24 (Reuters) – Uber Technologies Inc (UBER.N) has reached a deal to integrate its ride-sharing app with Italy’s biggest taxi dispatcher as it seeks to boost its presence in the world’s third-largest economy. eurozone, the company said. tuesday.

The move is part of Uber’s strategy to work with established taxi operators, capitalizing on a recovery in demand from the pandemic-induced downturn.

As part of the agreement with IT Taxi, more than 12,000 taxi drivers in Italy will have access to the Uber platform. It will make the app available in more than 80 new cities and expand Uber’s existing business in major cities such as Rome, Milan, Turin and Bologna.

The partnership, which will begin in June, follows similar agreements in Spain, Germany, Austria, Turkey, South Korea, Hong Kong as well as New York and San Francisco. The company wants all taxis to be available on its app by 2025. read more

“This is a truly historic agreement in one of our most strategically important markets globally,” said Dara Khosrowshahi, CEO of Uber.

“We firmly believe that taxis and Uber are better together, and we are committed to making this a partnership of trust and long-term cooperation,” he added.

Like other countries in Europe, Italy in 2015 blocked the use of the Uber service which relied on drivers without a commercial license following legal challenges by taxi associations.

In Italy, Uber currently operates in eight cities, including Rome and Milan, where it offers its so-called Uber Black service, providing professional drivers in luxury sedans.

Reporting by Elvira Pollina Editing by Keith Weir

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