Uber is Entering the Ads Business
By Travis Riffe • November 7, 2019
Uber will begin selling ad space inside its Eats app to restaurants hoping to lure in more food delivery orders. Now, instead of just a quid pro quo, where Uber exchanges added visibility to restaurants willing to offer discounts that could keep users loyal to Uber Eats, it plans to formally sell ads. The fresh opportunity in ads comes at a critical time when Uber is desperate to show its future potential in the face of a sagging share price. However, selling ads could do much more than raise the share price. Ads could also serve as a wedge for Uber to move deeper into business intelligence services for restaurants. It could apply its data on food delivery demand to help kitchens to optimize prices, allocate staff and improve menus.