Times Group made Rs 150-crore deal with Uber after taxi company was banned in Delhi: Report

According to an investigation by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists, Times Internet, the digital arm of the Times of India group, invested in American taxi service provider Uber in India in 2015. The deal was reportedly valued at around Rs 150 crore and allowed Uber to “leverage the reach of assets owned by the Times Group, across print, television as well as 150 million monthly active users on digital”, the Indian Express, which partnered the ICIJ in the investigation, reported.

Notably, the deal came shortly after Uber was banned in Delhi following the rape of a woman passenger by an Uber driver. According to the Indian Express, the editor of the Economic Times newspaper sent an email to Uber cofounder Travis Kalanick inviting him to The Economic Times Global Business Summit.

“With the Delhi government revising its rules to allow Uber to resume operations, perhaps January would be a good time for you to revive your travel plan…I would urge that you travel to New Delhi on January 16 and 17, when The Economic Times Global Business Summit will take place…your insights will help set the agenda for policy formulation in India and other countries. It will also enable you to acquaint yourself with decision-makers in India,” the email read.

Shortly after, Times Internet made a “strategic investment” in Uber.

When asked about the deal, Sivakumar Sundaram, Chairman, Executive Committee, Times of India Group, in an email to the Indian Express and the Guardian, rejected the questions sent and called them “motivated and coloured”.

On the investments made by Times Internet, Sundaram said, “All investments made by the companies in the group would be in their course of business and in compliance with laws of India as well as the code of conduct applicable to all Times group companies.” He went on to state that Bennett, Coleman and Co Ltd, the conglomerate which owns the Times Group, had a “cordial advertising relationship with Uber in India”.

“We further categorically deny facilitating or providing Uber with any form of political access or promoting changes in legislation/regulation. These are internal matters of the said company, and you may reach out to them directly in this regard,” Sundaram said.

Uber entered into similar partnerships with other media groups around the world, including the UK’s Daily Mail, Germany’s Bild and Italy’s L’Espresso, according to the Washington Post.

Recently, top executives of BCCL were questioned by the Enforcement Directorate over alleged violations of the Foreign Exchange Management Act and under Prevention of Money Laundering Act.