SINGAPORE - Grab has added hotel reservation services Agoda and Booking.com; entertainment ticketing platform BookMyShow; and on-demand video streaming service HOOQ to its super app ecosystem in Singapore, the company announced on Tuesday (April 23).
In addition to hotel bookings, on-demand video streaming and ticket purchases, Grab is also introducing an integrated public transport planning service to its app. The services will be rolled out progressively, and be available to all users in Singapore by June.
Jerald Singh, group head of product and design at Grab, said: "We are excited to offer these new services to our customers, giving them better access to the services that matter the most to them. A day with Grab can now be seamless from planning your commute to work, to ordering your next meal, and getting ready for your next movie date or holiday trip."
Grab, which began as a ride-hailing service, has been transitioning into a multi-service platform, with food delivery and financial services among its key new product lines.
According to Grab's data, Singapore residents are the most well-travelled in South-east Asia. With Grab's new "Hotels" booking service, users can compare prices and book accommodation from Agoda, and soon, Booking.com directly from the app. The company has started to roll out this service to select users in Singapore, which will be available to all users in May, it said.
Currently, Grab's Platinum, Gold and Silver users can redeem vouchers of up to S$20 off hotels booked through Agoda, with a minimum spending of S$200. Grab Platinum users can also gain access to Booking.com's Genius programme, and enjoy 10 per cent discounts and other benefits. Among other things, Grab users will also get free travel personal accident, and flight delay insurance with each hotel booking.
Separately, Grab will also be offering online video content through its app in partnership with HOOQ. Starting from May, all Grab users in Singapore will get two months of free HOOQ content when they subscribe via the app, and enjoy a discounted rate of S$7.98 per month thereafter, payable via GrabPay.
Third, Grab's new "Tickets" service, to be rolled out by June together with BookMyShow, will allow users to search, compare and purchase tickets from cinema chains including Cathay Cineplexes and Carnival. This service will be extended to include ticketing to other events in the future, the company said. Grab claims that ticket revenue in Singapore represents a US$150 million market, with the city state boasting one of the highest per-capita cinema attendance rates in the world, at 4.2 visits a year.
Lastly, Grab's new "Trip Planner" service, available to all Singapore users from Tuesday, will enable them to plan their journey with real-time public transportation information and directions.
Once a user enters their destination via Trip Planner, they will be able to view all available public transit travel options, along with real-time departure and arrival times. They will also receive recommendations of transportation options including GrabShare or GrabTaxi, which they can book immediately.
"This offers greater predictability and certainty for daily commute, and allows users to plan their end-to-end journey better," the company said.
Grab's latest partnerships come shortly after it announced last week that it will be integrating GrabFood into its main app.
The company added that it plans to have 500 GrabPlatform partners by the end of the year.
GrabPlatform, which was launched last year, is a suite of APIs (application programming interface) that give partners access to components of Grab's technology including transport, logistics and payments among other things.
