The government’s anti-trust body ordered ride-sharing service provider Uber to continue operating its mobile application in the Philippines while the agency is reviewing the deal.
The Philippine Competition Commission also directed Singapore-based Grab to defer the acquisition of its California-based rival while the deal was under review.
An official of the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board, however, said Uber’s accreditation as a transport provider in the country already expired and thus should not be allowed to operate.
Grab Holdings Inc. and MyTaxi.PH Inc. earlier announced the acquisition of assets of Uber B.V. and Uber Systems Inc. in Southeast Asia and has started to carry out the terms of its sale, including the migration of Uber drivers to its platform and the shutdown of the Uber app by April 9 in the Philippines.
PCC said in a bid to protect competition in a looming monopoly, it issued a set of interim measures to ensure the welfare of the riding public and the drivers while the in-depth merger review of the Grab-Uber deal was ongoing.
“The PCC believes that Uber is capable of operating its ride-hailing app in the country, despite its claims that it has already exited the Southeast Asia market,” PCC chairman Arsenio Balisacan said.
“Uber is highlighting its exit, but what it does not emphasize enough is its integration with Grab. Thus, Uber is not truly exiting the Philippine market, but rather effectively merging their operations with Grab here. The deal makes Uber a part-owner of Grab,” Balisacan said.
“This move by Uber in the Philippine market leads to further substantial concentration of what is, to begin with, an already highly concentrated ride-sharing market. This virtual monopolization of the market by Grab can harm the riding public,” Balisacan said.
PCC conducted a public hearing with the representatives of the parties on Thursday regarding the imposition of interim measures.
PCC also asked Grab and Uber to maintain the independence of their business operations and other conditions prevailing prior to March 25, which included ride hailing and delivery platforms; pricing and payment policies including incentives and promotions to riders; product options; customer and rider database; and on-boarding of new partner drivers as well as the fees, charges, and incentives to partner drivers, among other measures.
“Uber’s compliance with our antitrust counterpart in Singapore to extend the operation of its app indicates the feasibility of continuing its operations in the Philippines as well,” Balisacan said.
PCC said it has the mandate to protect competition in the market and prohibit anticompetitive conduct, including mergers and acquisitions of businesses and companies that may substantially prevent, restrict, or lessen competition.
A merger or acquisition review using competition lens will determine whether the merger of two players in the ride-sharing market will substantially lessen competition. PCC may prohibit any merger should anticompetitive concerns arise out of the transaction review.
PCC is mandated under the Philippine Competition Act to review mergers, acquisitions and joint ventures of firms across all sectors. PCC said it was committed to ensure that Grab’s acquisition of Uber in the Philippines would not harm the interest of the riding public.