Frog Becomes 9th E-Scooter Firm To Enter Austin Market

AUSTIN, TEXAS — Because there are only about 14,000 electric scooters in the city of Austin, another entrant into the crowded market is hopping into the mix. Locally based Frog joins nine other providers of scooters in the city as of Tuesday, according to a published report.

The scooter firm joins Bird, Jump, Lime, Lyft, Uber and other smaller players in adding the dock-less contraptions to city streets and sidewalks. However, the company won't unleash its versions until it tests markets in Chile and Portugal, company officials told the Austin American-Statesman.

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Look to hop on a Frog by mid-year, when they leap into the market in earnest. The number of scooters the company plans to drop on the capital city is unclear but officials have ambitious plans, according to the report. By the end of this year, Frog officials hope to have a presence on four continents, the newspaper reported.

Unlike other e-scooter providers who hire freelance workers to retrieve abandoned scooters to recharge them, the report read, Frog will hire full-time managers in charge of specific areas of the city to retrieve unused scooters.

But it's not easy being Frog, as competition is stiff. According to City of Austin data, there are nine industry players collectively deploying some 14,100 e-scooters across the local landscape.

>>> Read the full story at Austin American-Statesman