Grab fares surge in the Philippines under opaque algorithm
Grab, a popular ride-hailing app in the Philippines, came under scrutiny for its opaque surge pricing algorithm. An investigation by the Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism (PCIJ) revealed that GrabCar rides always include surge fees, regardless of the time or day, resulting in fares being consistently above the minimum fare estimated by Grab's own fare check tool. The investigators also found that high fares did not always correlate with shorter waiting times, contradicting Grab's advertised purpose of surge pricing, and the algorithm's behaviour often differed from Grab's public explanations of how it works. Grab refuses to reveal the actual process for calculating fares, resulting in critics accusing the company of profiteering and opacity. The company has been regularly under scrutiny for overpricing, ride cancellations and other issues since its acquisition of Uber's business across South-east Asia. The investigation highlights concerns about algorithmic transparency and fairness in ride-hailing services. It also raises questions about the effectiveness of surge pricing in improving service quality, as long wait times persisted even during high-fare periods. Dynamic pricing Dynamic pricing, also referred to as surge pricing, demand pricing, or time-based pricing, and variable pricing is a revenue management pricing strategy in which businesses set flexible prices for products or services based on current market demands. Source: Wikipedia 🔗 System 🤖 Grab pricing algorithm Documents 📃 Grab. Why fares go up when it rains Developer: Grab Country: Philippines Sector: Trans port/logistics Purpose: Calculate surge price Technology: Pricing al gorithm Issue: Effectiveness / value; Fairness Investigations, assessments, audits 👁️ Philipine Center for Investigative Journalism. Grab fares surge under opaque algorithm Philipine Center for Investigative Journalism. ‘Teka Teka’ Podcast: Why Is Grab So Expensive? Part 1 of 2 Philipine Center for Investigative Journalism. ‘ Teka Teka’ Podcast: Why Is Grab So Expensive? Part 2 of 2
- Date it happened
- 2016-01-01
- Organisation involved
- GrabCar
- Product, system or model
- Grab surge pricing algorithm
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