Google Maps’ price cuts in India was in response to us, not anyone else: MapmyIndia’s Rohan Verma

It’s been an eventful few weeks for MapmyIndia, the Delhi-based digital navigation and location services provider that’s been “mapping India” for nearly 30 years. Its results for the financial year ended March 2024 (FY24) have been impressive, with revenues growing at a compounded annual growth rate (CAGR) of 38%, annual new order bookings swelling by 63%, and profit after tax (PAT) surpassing Rs 134 crore.

Rohan Verma, CEO of the publicly listed firm, highlights that these are “real PAT” numbers, “not adjusted PAT”. He has also outlined his vision for the company to hit the Rs 1,000-crore revenue mark by 2028, riding on its dominant position in the fast-growing Automotive and Mobility segments.

But of late, MapmyIndia has found itself in the news due to being embroiled in a legal battle against Ola Electric*. Once a MapmyIndia customer, Ola Electric is now the newest entrant in India’s digital mapping sector with its homegrown ‘Ola Maps’. While MapmyIndia alleges that Ola has reverse-engineered its licensed product and stolen its data, the Bhavish Aggarwal-owned company, which recently listed on the bourses with much fanfare, has denied any wrongdoing.

Even though the matter is sub-judice, there’s no denying that India’s digital maps economy is increasingly heating up with the mushrooming of newer players, the rise of open-source maps, and the aggressive strategic moves made by global incumbents such as Google Maps. “There’s Rs 8,700 crore of business to be had here,” Verma told The CapTable in an interview in mid-August. “But a map is not a software. To build a map, you have to collect data across 3.3 million square kilometres of India,” he said.

Edited excerpts from the conversation: