Sony launches taxi service S.Ride in Tokyo

A Sony-led joint venture today launched a taxi service in Tokyo, marking another major entry into the unusual transportation landscape in Japan. The S.Ride app from Minna no Taxi is available from today and allows users to report normal taxis; payment can be cash, credit card or QR code wallet.

The S in S.Ride is not synonymous with Sony, as one might expect: a press release describes the service as "simple, smart and fast". The name can also be read as a word game, as the user interface of the application. is based on a slippery gesture. According to Sony, S.Ride uses artificial intelligence technology to predict where the demand will be highest and distribute the drivers accordingly.

Minna no Taxi (Everybody's Taxi) was created last year by Sony Payment Services, Sony Corp. itself, and six taxi companies, although only five are mentioned in today's press release. This includes Daiwa and Kokusai, two of Tokyo's largest operators, and Sony has announced that the total size of its fleet would exceed 10,000 cars.

S.Ride is not the first application of this type in Japan – the dominant cat application Line has initiated a similar collaboration with leading taxi company Nihon Kotsu in 2015, although it has ceased operations latest. The biggest competitor will be JapanTaxi, an application run by Ichiro Kawanabe, CEO of Nihon Kotsu and President of the Japan Taxi Federation. Uber is a tiny actor in Japan and offers only high-end black cars in Tokyo, although he is starting to form partnerships with taxi companies.