The municipality of São Paulo presents Uber’s rival app MobizapSP

The Municipal Secretary of Mobility and Transit (SMT) of the city of São Paulo launched this Thursday, the 9th, the private transport application MobizapSP, with a version for passengers (Android, iOS) and drivers (Android, iOS). The app will compete directly with 99 and Uber. It was presented this morning to digital industry leaders/influencers and the press at CET headquarters in the central region of São Paulo.

MobizapSP was produced by the 3C Consortium, made up of the companies Construtora, Laços Detetores e Eletrônica, Consilux Consultoria e Construções Elétricas and CSX Inovação, which will be able to use the license for five years. The business pool received the municipality’s license after winning the SMT tender process in June last year. The group offered the lowest revenue share among bidders (10.95%) for the platform, leaving the rest to the driver.

Thiago Hidalgo, CEO at Consulix Tecnologia and vice president of technology and operations at CSX Inovação, explained that the main difference for the driver is the lower revenue share compared to rivals. On the other hand, the user does not need to pay the dynamic value and will have an option similar to the two main applications in the market.

According to Councilor Marlon Luz (MDB-SP), the idea of ​​Mobizap SP is to offer the option of “a fair ride for the driver and passenger” at any time of the day, with high or low demand. Luz, who participated in the CPI of Applications in the Chamber of Councilors and brought information from the committee on the development of the application, said that MobizapSP can help reduce excessive working hours and low income among drivers.

How does it work?

Officially, the app entered the Google and Apple markets at 11 am. Users and managers can now download MobizapSP and register. When filling in their details, drivers or passengers must add a selfie to have biometric verification. There is also the option to pre-register on the application website. The app’s tours are only valid for the city of São Paulo. In turn, the application will allow drivers from other cities to work in São Paulo. And every 15 days the app will be updated, either to add features or fix bugs. It is worth noting that the city of São Paulo will not share in the app’s profits, it will only receive the same fees that it receives from other means of transportation, such as the company’s ISS and the taxi drivers’ fee.

executive and legislative

Councilor Marlon Luz (gray suit) and secretary Ricardo Teixeira (credit: Henrique Medeiros)

The Secretary of Mobility and Transit, Ricardo Teixeira, said that the municipal administration enters only with the approval of the application. At the same time, the municipal representative said that he will regulate Mobizap like other applications. Regarding the risk of the city hall receiving a lawsuit from market leaders with Cade for the market reserve for being a regulator and supporting an application that offers lower rates than rivals at the same time, Teixeira said the tender process was open and that Uber and 99 could have entered.

“Anyone could have participated (in the tender). The premise was just the lowest rate. So it was a public thing, we didn’t hide anything. But if someone comes to complain, I ask: why didn’t you participate in the tender?”, he added.

Teixeira also said there are no targets for drivers to unionize at the moment, as he believes it will be a self-regulated process. He stated that the 3C Consortium should do a strong media job to communicate the arrival and benefits of the app to drivers and passengers.

taxi x car

Councilor Marlon Luz in an informal chat with app leaders after the event (Credit: Henrique Medeiros/Mobile Time)

Hidalgo told Mobile Time that the app comes with an integrated digital wallet. Through it, the user makes payments (Pix, credit or debit to the wallet balance) and the driver receives his income. He also stated that because it has a license, the application can evolve into other categories, such as taxis, and even add a single ticket, but this depends on the desire of the municipality.

The Secretary of Mobility and Traffic believes that MobizapSP does not need to have taxis to begin with, as the municipality already offers TaxiSP. But he predicts that during the trip, the application can also add new services to increase its income: “Nothing prevents taxi drivers from joining (MobizapSP). It’s not what we want. The municipality wants them to stay there (TaxiSP). But in the future, within the government, studying, if we can also merge these two applications, there will be no problem. What we want is fair and dignified work,” he said.

On the other hand, councilor Luz sees the participation of taxi drivers in MobizapSP as natural, since Uber and 99 also offer these categories.