Ola enters the Australian market, its first international venture

Further intensifying its battle with its US-based rival, Uber, the ride-sharing app Ola made move to launch its operation in Australia. To begin the process the Bengaluru-based company has invited private hire car owners in three Australian cities.

Ola in a press statement said: "Starting today Ola is inviting private hire vehicle owners in Sydney, Melbourne, and Perth to learn more about driving and registering with Ola by visiting drive.olacabs.com." Ola plans to launch its services in Australia in early 2018.

It plans to first launch in Sydney, Melbourne and Perth and also said that it will soon start recruiting drivers. But Ola's biggest rival in India, Uber dominates the Australian taxi-hailing app industry.

The Company’s co-founder and CEO Bhavish Aggarwal said in the company’s press release that Ola is very excited about launching its operations in Australia and they see immense potential for the ride-sharing ecosystem which embraces new technology and innovation.

Ola has an upper hand over Uber in Australia; the fact that most taxi drivers Australia are Indians, which can turn out be good for Ola from a cultural point of view. Jaspal Singh, co-founder of research and advisory firm Valoriser Consultants, told Quartz. He also added that Ola is very hopeful that they can capture the market by using the Indian diaspora.

Both Uber and Ola have received huge investment from Japan's Softbank. In India, Ola operates in 100-plus cities and has over 125 million users in the country. It claims to serve a billion rides annually. But volumes don’t always translate to big bucks, experts say.