NRAI plans legal action against Zomato, Swiggy over 10-min delivery apps

Both Zomato and Swiggy have defended their quick delivery services and are working to dispel fears of data exploitation

The National Restaurants Association of India (NRAI), representing over half a million eateries nationwide, is readying to challenge the rapid food delivery services launched by Zomato-owned Blinkit and Swiggy in the court. This comes after recent discussions between NRAI officials and the two food delivery giants failed to reach a resolution, according to a report by The Economic Times.

 

The NRAI will convene a town hall meeting on Wednesday to deliberate its next steps, following a series of meetings with Zomato and Swiggy executives. The central issue is the standalone 10-minute food delivery apps – Blinkit’s Bistro and Swiggy’s Snacc – which have stirred concerns among restaurant owners about private labelling and data privacy.

 

 

Key concerns on 10-min delivery apps

Restaurants have voiced concerns over the potential misuse of data and the perceived threat posed by these quick delivery services. While Zomato and Swiggy attempted to address these concerns, no consensus was reached.

 

Zomato’s founder and CEO, Deepinder Goyal, in a letter to restaurant partners, highlighted Zomato’s strategy to reduce delivery timelines by lowering commissions for short-distance orders, stating, “Bistro is not an existential threat to the restaurant industry.”

 

Blinkit CEO Albinder Dhindsa also assured that no restaurant data from Zomato would be utilised for the Bistro service, aiming to dispel fears of data exploitation.

 

Potential regulatory intervention

The NRAI is also considering approaching the Competition Commission of India (CCI) to express its concerns over the 10-minute delivery model. Additionally, the association is exploring alternatives through collaborations with the open network for digital commerce (ONDC) and platforms like Magicpin and Ola.

 

Discussions are underway to enhance the presence of restaurants on ONDC-supported apps, with stakeholders from major restaurant chains and cloud kitchens, including Box8 and McDonald’s, participating.

 

Both Zomato and Swiggy have defended their quick delivery services, with Swiggy’s Bolt service, which offers expedited deliveries through restaurant partnerships, already accounting for over 5 per cent of its total orders.