Uber introduced a Ride Request Button that developers can add to any iOS or Android app through “a few lines of code”.

The button can be added next to addresses in apps, and will take users to Uber with the ride preconfigured. Those without the app will be taken to the relevant store to download.

US-based developers can sign up to an affiliate programme and earn money for every new US rider that signs up through their app. Uber will pay them $5 for each first-time rider they refer if they reach a minimum of $250 in referral fees.

In the past, Uber has partnered with Zomato, a restaurant finder, and Google Maps to offer similar buttons.

According to TechCrunch, “one catch is that Uber’s policy bans developers from also integrating hooks into any other competing car service, like Lyft”.

“Uber’s policy incentivises it racing to sign up partners for its API as a way to block Lyft from getting integrated too if it launches an official API,” the report added.

Uber said the button will “get smarter, richer and more useful over time”.