Didi Dache being probed

Taxi hailing app Didi Dache is under investigation for unfair competition because it provided prizes worth more than 5,000 yuan ($800) in a lottery promotion, the Beijing News newspaper reported over the weekend.

The Haidian branch of Beijing Administration for Industry and Commerce found that a lottery promotion started by Didi Dache in April offered expensive prizes to users including Audi cars, the report said.

However, China restricts lottery promotion prizes to no more than 5,000 yuan, in a bid to avoid unfair competition, the report said.

The Haidian industry administration's investigation showed that there was another similar lottery promotion launched by Didi Dache that ran from December 2013 to January 2014, and the company admitted it had not known about the restriction before, according to the report.

According to the anti-unfair competition law, the company may be fined for the excessively valued prizes in its lottery promotion, with the possible amount ranging from 10,000 yuan to 100,000 yuan, the report said.