CRI听力:Ride hailing regulations, sector shake down--who benefits most?

After the merger, social media in China was full of chatter about the deal with some customers claiming that prices had immediately soared.

In a message to staff, Didi CEO Cheng Wei and President Jean Liu said the intense rivalry between the two parties had helped them grow quickly and contribute to soaring market growth, making China the world's largest On Demand ride hailing market.

Hans Tung, from GGV Capital was an early investor in Didi Chuxing. He believes the tie-up was inevitable.

"It doesn't make sense for a U.S. startup to go into China late and try to do a lot on its own. It's a completely different market. The way it operates and how it deals with government are completely different. I think Uber boss Travis Kalanick is also very strategic in doing this deal, because he knows that there are other markets beyond car sharing that he can go after. And he also knows at some point in the future, it is possible that a Google or an Amazon will aggressively go into this market."

Bill Gurley is from Benchmark Capital. He is also an Uber Board Member and was an early investor in the company.

"I look at it this way. If any other startup in Silicon Valley was selling today for 7 billion dollars, everyone would be writing about what an amazing outcome it was. There is a strong likelihood that China will be the biggest ride sharing market in the world, but on top of that the U.S. market has evolved to a place where car ownership is pervasive. In China, that's not true at all. So you have an opportunity to leapfrog car ownership."

Apart from a possible price hike, drivers are concerned about lower incomes. There are also industry fears the two companies could form a monopoly that could disrupt market competition.

The combined market share of Didi and Uber has been is estimated at over 93 percent.

Didi claims that the merger won't significantly change prices, and they will continue to offer subsidies to passengers and drivers for some time as they still only reach about one percent of China's 800 million urban population.

Ye Yun is Didi Chuxing's chief public relations officer. He says initially there should be no change for the various stakeholders.

"After acquisition, the two brands will still operate separately to ensure a driver - and passenger- friendly service. And we will integrate the advantages of both sides, optimize the team management and technology to provide better service for the Didi users."

In China, if two companies planning a merger have a combined China-wide annual revenue of at least 2 billion yuan - about 302 million US Dollars - with each individual company having a turnover of at least 400 million RMB, they must file an approval report to China's anti-monopoly bureau.

The Ministry of Commerce said earlier this week it hadn't received a declaration from the two parties. According to Didi, the two companies have yet to make a profit, and Uber China did not meet the declaration standards last year.

Zhu Wei is a researcher from the China University of Political Science and Law. He says there are still too many questions about the deal announced on Monday.

"The acquisition faces two challenges. First whether the acquisition is a monopoly or not has not been identified yet. Second, Uber is an American-based company. So Didi and Uber have independent capital resources, registered drivers and users. How to protect the information security will be a mutual concern for both sides."

The new regulations were two years in the making. At the start of that period, ride hailing was a novelty. For many Chinese commuters and travelers it's now become a way of life. It's certainly a mode of getting from A to B that is here to stay. But the big question will be how much it will cost to run, and how much customers will be asked to pay.

For CRI, this is Yin Xiuqi.