Zomato Gold issues far from over, food aggregators in talks with NRAI

No significant progress could be made on Zomato Gold issue, National Restaurant Association of India (NRAI) said following their meeting held with online food delivery apps. NRAI added that the discussions in the second meeting were mostly positive. NRAI has been in talks with Zomato and Swiggy on eight central issues. Commenting on the development, NRAI President Anurag Katriar had this to say in a statement:

"Follow up meetings with both Swiggy and Zomato on the eight core issues were largely positive and talks have progressed well so far," NRAI President Anurag Katriar said in a statement.

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As per Katriar, both Zomato and Swiggy presented tangible roadmap and informed NRAI of the progress made thus far. He also added that since the desired changes are reasonably substantial and significant, their total resolution may take some time. NRAI had raised critical issues such as deep discounting, data masking, high and uneven commission charges with the delivery aggregators.

"However, no significant progress was made on the subject of Zomato Gold. NRAI remains steadfast in its belief that Zomato Gold in its current form is not acceptable in either dine-in or delivery segment," Katriar said.

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Katriar added NRAI also took note and appreciated that Zomato had put the contentious Infinity dining programme in abeyance till further notice. Commenting on the #Logout campaign against Zomato Gold, Katriar had this to say:

"NRAI has successfully concluded talks with Dine out, Gourmet Passport, Nearbuy and Magicpin and they are back in business and out of the purview of #Logout".

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Zomato responds

Zomato stated it continues to engage NRAI on all issues faced by the online food-tech industry. Commenting on this development, a Zomato spokesperson had this to say:

"We continue to have discussions with NRAI on all issues faced by the industry and are focused on providing solutions sustainable for all participlants," said a Zomato spokesperson.

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Swiggy responds

"NRAI plays an important role in our continued efforts to enable restaurant partners to grow sustainably while benefitting from the latest technology interventions. Our recent discussions on the various projects have been well received and has brought us one step closer to achieving our combined goals," a Swiggy spokesperson said.

(With PTI inputs)