MAM
India tops global survey in satisfaction with romantic/sex life: Ipsos survey
Mumbai: Ipsos Global Advisor 31 country, love life satisfaction around the world survey shows interesting insights about urban Indians and their romantic life. India tops all 31 markets covered in the survey, in satisfaction with romantic/sex life with at least 76 per cent urban Indians claiming to be satisfied. In comparison, only 62 per cent global citizens claimed to be satisfied on this attribute. Mexico was tied in with India at the top spot (76 per cent), followed by China (75 per cent), Thailand (75 per cent), Indonesia (73 per cent) and Colombia (73 per cent). And the citizens least satisfied with their romantic/ sex life were from Japan (37 per cent), South Korea (45 per cent) & Canada (52 per cent).
Feeling loved
Reminiscing the track Love Me Do of The Beatles, love is definitely felt across all global markets with almost 3 in 4 global citizens (74 per cent) claiming to be satisfied with feeling loved. 84 per cent urban Indians felt satisfied with their feeling of being loved. India was placed 2nd in the pecking order and was preceded by Colombia (86 per cent) and Peru (86 per cent) – tied at the top spot.
Japan was placed at the bottom of the heap with only 1 in 2 satisfied with feeling loved (51 per cent).
Commenting on the findings of the survey, Ipsos UU & Synthesio, India group service line leader Ashwini Sirsikar said, “India topping the charts is not really a surprise as we as a society believe in love, institution of marriage, stable and enduring romantic relationships. If we look at Valentine’s Day per se, from being a subdued activity in the past, it is now more overt with gifting, dining, celebrating, with social media being a key enabler. Marketers have leveraged this opportunity to pull out all stops to celebrate this day of love into a weeklong activity – starting with rose day, propose day, teddy day, promise day, hug day, kiss day, culminating with Valentine’s Day.”
Relationship with partner/ spouse
So, how satisfied are citizens with their partner/ spouse? This question was posed to those married or partnered. Interestingly, 83 per cent urban Indians and 83 per cent global citizens claimed to be satisfied with the relationship shared with their partner/ spouse. India was placed 15th in the pecking order. Markets placed at the top were Thailand (92 per cent), Netherlands (91 per cent) and Indonesia (88 per cent). Though South Korea (68 per cent) and Japan (69 per cent) were ranked lowest, at the same time majority of their citizens were satisfied with their relationship with their significant other.
“Urban Indian couples are mostly working, with dual incomes to augment their lifestyle, and lead a comfortable life, as they get household help for chores. With education and financial freedom, couples these days share an almost equal relationship, of understanding and camaraderie. The survey reaffirms our belief in love and affection,” added Sirsikar.
Brands
Uber launches hotel bookings feature in partnership with Expedia
From hotel bookings to room service at your door, the ride-hailing giant is making its boldest push yet into everyday life
CALIFORNIA: Uber is done being just a taxi app. At its annual GO-GET product event, the world’s leading mobility and delivery platform unveiled a sweeping set of new features designed to plant itself at the centre of how people travel, eat and shop, hotel bookings included.
The headline move is a partnership with Expedia Group that lets Uber users in the United States book hotels directly within the Uber app, with access to a catalogue that will eventually grow to more than 700,000 properties worldwide. Uber One members get 10 per cent back in Uber One credits on all hotel bookings and savings of at least 20 per cent on a rolling list of more than 10,000 hotels globally. Vacation rentals from Vrbo, Expedia Group’s home-rental brand, will be added later this year. The partnership is expected to expand beyond the United States. From June, Uber rides will also be integrated directly into the Expedia app, with push notifications sent to travellers ahead of hotel check-in to book discounted Uber rides for the duration of their stay.
Dara Khosrowshahi, chief executive of Uber, framed the expansion in terms of the modern condition. “Uber is becoming an app for everything, helping people go, get, and now travel all in one place,” he said. “We’re all living through a moment of real cognitive overload: too many apps, too many decisions, too much noise. At the end of the day, our job is to help people reclaim their time, spending less of it managing the logistics of life and more of it actually living.”
Ariane Gorin, chief executive of Expedia Group, struck a similarly ambitious note. “Travel should feel effortless, and this partnership gets us one step closer to offering a seamless traveller experience,” she said. “By connecting our two-sided marketplace with Uber, we’re bringing Uber rides directly into the Expedia app and Expedia Group’s lodging inventory into the Uber app through our Rapid API technology. Together, we’re helping travellers spend less time planning and more time enjoying the journey.”
Beyond hotels, the product announcements come thick and fast. Travel Mode, available within both the Uber and Uber Eats apps, offers curated recommendations on local favourites, tourist destinations, OpenTable restaurant reservations and on-demand delivery to hotel rooms. Uber One International means the membership programme now works globally, allowing members to earn credits on rides abroad that can be redeemed once back home. A new Shop for Me feature lets users request items from any store, even those not listed on the app. Eats for the Way allows riders in select cities booking an Uber Black or Uber Black SUV to have a drink or snack waiting for them in the car. Voice Bookings, powered by artificial intelligence, lets users book a ride conversationally, without touching their phone. And a redesigned One Search bar consolidates results for places, food and items across the entire Uber platform in a single query.
Uber has now logged more than 72 billion trips since it launched in 2010. The question it is now answering is what comes after the ride. The answer, apparently, is everything else. Whether users want a hotel in Paris, a coffee in the back of a car or a snake plant from the local garden centre, Uber would very much like to be the one to provide it. The app economy’s land grab has a new front-runner.
NOTE: The image used is AI generated and only for representational purposes.
