Doctor booking platform Practo has entered into an partnership with cab-hailing app Uber which will allow its users, who book an appointment, to see the closest Uber taxi available when they get a reminder alert for their appointments. Users can then click the reminder notification and complete the booking process.
The partnership is live in four markets – India, Indonesia, Philippines and Singapore and will soon expand to cover more countries. Users will also get an estimated fare and how long it will take for the cab to arrive. The driver’s app will be pre-filled with the destination address at the beginning of the trip.
Other Uber integrations
Earlier in April, Uber partnered with Zomato to allow users to instantly see the estimated pickup time, fare and travel time to the restaurant they were looking up. In May, Uber, Foodpanda and Zo Rooms tied up to which allowed travelers to book rooms, order food and call for a cab for a limited period. Through the deal, travelers got a free ride up to Rs 500 and 50% off coupons on Foodpanda orders. Users would also receive 100% cashback upon checking in to any one of the 150+ properties Zo Rooms currently holds in 13 cities.
It’s also worth noting that Uber had released its API for third-party app developers. The developer site already list 11 partners that have integrated Uber’s on-demand transport service in their applications, including OpenTable, Starbucks, TripAdvisor, Time Out, and Expensify.
Similarly, in September, Ola opened up its API for developers, that would let developers integrate the platform’s services on their apps. At the time, the company mentioned that Samsung, MakeMyTrip, Helpchat and inMobi had already integrated its API.
Uber’s Google maps integration: Uber had rolled out Google Maps integration in India in February. As part of the integration, when users search for a destination they would also get an option to book a ride with Uber which showed up in the public transportation pane. It shows an estimated pick up time, time to destination and fare.
Funding: In August, Practo raised $90 million in a Series C funding round led by Tencent and Sofina with existing investor Sequoia Capital. Google Capital, Altimeter Capital, Matrix Partners and DST Global founder Yuri Milner also participated in the round. This round totals Practo’s funding at $125 million.
Malaysia expansion: In October, Practo started operations in Malaysia. The company right now offers two products in Malaysia, Practo Ray, its cloud-based practice management solution for doctors and clinics and Practo Search, which allows consumers to search through their verified database of healthcare professionals.
