As Meituan and JD.com intensify their competition in the food delivery sector, Taobao has also entered the fray.

This scenario feels eerily familiar.

We have witnessed internet giants engaging in similar battles before, such as the ride-hailing wars.

Now, these established industries are reigniting the flames of competition, disrupting the existing market structure.

While internet players are waging a new war in food delivery and ride-hailing, this war bears fundamental differences from those of the past.

Recognizing both the similarities and differences between these wars, rather than equating them, is crucial to truly grasping the logic behind the renewed food delivery wars.

The Era of Stock Management Has Dawned

If we encapsulate and define the food delivery wars of the mobile internet era, it was primarily a competition for user traffic among players.

At that stage, the battle was about who could capture the market fastest and sustain capital support the longest.

This is why we saw players who found a sweet spot between market demand and capital backing rise swiftly to establish their market dominance.

Meituan and Ele.me are prime examples of this development model.

As traffic peaked, particularly when the food delivery market neared saturation, the previous development model encountered increasing difficulties and challenges. This is the primary reason why the food delivery wars began to wane.

However, the failure of previous models and strategies does not imply that the food delivery market has exhausted its potential for change.

This is why we are now witnessing JD.com and Taobao entering the food delivery arena.

If the food delivery wars of the mobile internet era were about traffic acquisition, the new war unfolding now is about stock management.

For players, the real test is no longer about conquering new territories or seizing markets but about maintaining their market position in an established landscape and genuinely achieving new growth.

Thus, the advent of the true stock era is undoubtedly a significant aspect if we seek to understand the logic behind the renewed food delivery wars.

In this new era, players' true test is no longer external expansion but how they can enhance and upgrade the industry through their own initiatives.

In other words, in the stock era, the keys to players' success lie in achieving deep integration with the industry, bringing essential upgrades, and providing users with distinctly different experiences.

The Industrial Internet Era Has Arrived

As the consumer internet era wanes, an increasing number of players are focusing on the industrial internet.

However, despite recognizing the general trend of industrial internet development, few players can truly implement it due to uncertainties in business models and market competition.

In many cases, players' public promotion of their industrial internet layout is more of a concept than a genuine commitment.

One critical reason for this is that players still prioritize platforms, centers, scale, and efficiency as their ultimate goals.

It is evident that if players continue to implement the industrial internet based on these criteria, the true industrial internet will never materialize.

The genuine industrial internet is characterized by de-platformization and decentralization.

More specifically, the true industrial internet does not strictly have platforms or centers.

As the food delivery wars reignite, especially when players start to see themselves as integral parts of the food delivery industry rather than mere platforms, we should deeply observe the deep integration between food delivery platforms and the industry, along with the resulting de-platformization and decentralization model.

The competition between Meituan and JD.com is essentially a comparison of their integration depth with the food delivery industry.

For both Meituan and JD.com, the crucial factor in winning this new war is not their market size but who can bring essential upgrades and changes to the food delivery industry.

At this stage, true food delivery platforms do not exist; they are all part of the broader food delivery industry.

Only players who find the integration point with the food delivery industry and achieve true de-platformization and decentralization in this war can truly prevail.

The Era of Industry Dominance Has Begun

The reason why the war in the seemingly established food delivery market has reignited is that both platforms and the industry need change.

If we consider the previous food delivery market as an era dominated by internet platforms, the reignition of the food delivery wars signifies the true advent of the era of industry dominance.

In this era, both platforms and the food delivery industry are embarking on a new upgrade.

For platforms, they must move beyond matchmaking and intermediation, transcending their roles as mere platforms and centers. Instead, they need to upgrade themselves.

This is evident not only in improving riders' social security but also in reshaping and reengineering internet-dominated business models.

For food delivery platforms, the key to winning this new war lies in how deeply they can participate and integrate with the food delivery industry, rather than merely serving as a third party.

For the food delivery industry, they must explore ways to meet people's demand for healthy and green delivery options.

Ultimately, they need to upgrade the industry, shifting from merely satisfying the need to "eat" to satisfying the need to "eat well".

Whether platforms or food delivery companies, the primary competition now lies within the industry rather than focusing solely on users, as in the past.

For each player involved, the key to truly winning this new war is to bring essential upgrades and genuine changes to the industry, rather than merely focusing on users and market size.

In summary, the era of user dominance is over, and the era of industry dominance has arrived.

Final Thoughts

The food delivery market, which appeared to have a stable landscape, has reignited its competitive flames.

Through this renewed war, we must see more clearly the internal logic of industrial evolution and iterative upgrades it reveals.

From the ride-hailing market in the past to the food delivery market now, it seems that all industries are worth rethinking and redoing.

In fact, this signifies the arrival of a new era.

For every player aiming to make a difference in this era, finding the right approach and method to resonate with it is crucial to ensuring their victory in this new battle.