Micab CEO claims Grab PH behind ‘phantom bookings’ on its platform

Kyle Chua

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Micab CEO claims Grab PH behind ‘phantom bookings’ on its platform
Eddie Ybañez, Micab CEO, says the number of 'phantom bookings' has already reached 29,000 since June

MANILA, Philippines – Eddie Ybañez, CEO of local ride-hailing platform Micab, accused ride-hailing rival Grab Philippines in an op-ed post of being behind the so-called “phantom bookings” on its platform.

“In this kind of high stakes environment, many companies are often willing to do whatever it takes to succeed, and the public just as often turns a blind eye toward their actions, chalking it up to entrepreneurial ambition,” he wrote.

Grab allegedly created fake accounts on Micab to hit them with a “firestorm of phantom bookings” that sabotaged their operations and attempted to poach their drivers.

“Drivers waste time and money going to a pick-up location for passengers that will never come, and they ultimately become wary about accepting trips.”

In a BusinessWorld report, Ybañez said the number of “phantom bookings” has reportedly reached 29,000 since June.

Ybañez cited a similar incident in Singapore where ride-hailing platform Ryde announced that they had allegedly been hit with over 2,000 “phantom bookings” from over 300 fake accounts. The IP addresses of the fake accounts reportedly traced back to Grab.

Apart from the similarities to the Ryde incident, Ybanez said he knows his local rival is behind the attacks because drivers on his platform are being called to join Grab. “After booking one of our cabs, then waiting as usual before canceling, our drivers will receive a call a few minutes later inviting them to a driver’s orientation for Grab”

“If this occurred one or two times, you could easily dismiss it to coincidence — perhaps Grab obtained the driver’s number through some under means — but it’s happened several thousand times,” he added.

Grab has yet to respond to the accusations. – Rappler.com

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