Deputy Minister of Science and ICT Visits Kakao Mobility: "Expansion of GPS App Meter Taxis"

[Asia Economy Reporter Seolgina Jo] On the morning of the 14th, Jang Seok-young, the 2nd Vice Minister of the Ministry of Science and ICT, visited Kakao Mobility Co., Ltd., an ICT regulatory sandbox designated company, to directly check the KakaoT Blue service, which is the first mid-sized taxi to apply the 'GPS-based app meter,' and encouraged the employees.

According to the Ministry of Science and ICT, Kakao Mobility's GPS-based app meter is a software-type meter that calculates and charges taxi fares using GPS technology, and the service was launched in July this year.

Under the current Automobile Management Act, taxi meters are only regulated to operate electrically, so GPS-based app meters could not be used in taxis. Accordingly, the Ministry of Science and ICT granted temporary permission through the 6th ICT Regulatory Sandbox Deliberation Committee in September last year, and last month, the verification process by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport according to the temporary inspection standards was also completed.

The existing mechanical meters required manual adjustment of the device every time the fare changed, including toll fees, causing great inconvenience. The Ministry of Science and ICT estimated that the cost due to manual operation of mechanical meters in Seoul alone reached 4 billion KRW.

From now on, consumers will be able to check taxi fares in real time through the application, where toll costs, out-of-hours surcharges, and other fees are automatically calculated. As the possibility of fare disputes due to incorrect fare input decreases, benefits for both drivers and passengers are expected to improve. It will also be possible to apply various fare systems such as dynamic pricing that allows additional charges during peak demand times like commuting hours.

At the event, Vice Minister Jang Seok-young said, “Since Kakao Mobility is the first to apply app meters to regular taxis, I hope this service spreads so that the benefits of meter management agencies, taxi drivers, and passengers can all be enhanced.” He added, “The Ministry of Science and ICT will continue to strive to launch various innovative services in the market through the ICT regulatory sandbox and cooperate with related ministries to ensure that relevant regulations are improved early.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.