472 replies to this topic

[spanky123]

Those folks may save a little money, not get rich. The ones getting rich are the owners of Uber. It isn't fair that they are running what is essentially a taxi company using under licensed drivers and under insured cars. They can argue they are a tech company all they want but unless they make it a requirement that all drivers who sign up with them use a licensed taxi as the transport vehicle and have a class 1, 2 or 4 license, they are breaking the law. These laws exist to protect consumers. Yes, they also cost consumers money, but I think that is better than the alternative. Plenty of warning about avoiding unlicensed and unregulated cabs in countries that don't enforce it.

 

Agreed. Nobody is saying that Uber isn't welcome to use their technology to better serve clients and address a market opportunity All regulators are saying is that they need to play by the proper licensing rules..

 

Uber takes 20% of the fare AND tip for each ride. Someone is making money.

[Coreyburger]

Agreed. Nobody is saying that Uber isn't welcome to use their technology to better serve clients and address a market opportunity All regulators are saying is that they need to play by the proper licensing rules..

 

Uber is out to destroy regulation. They have flat out said so. People have built their lives around the existing regulation (for good or ill for society as a whole). We should be careful about ripping down regulation without considering the impact of people's lives.

[Jason-L]

Those folks may save a little money, not get rich. The ones getting rich are the owners of Uber. It isn't fair that they are running what is essentially a taxi company using under licensed drivers and under insured cars. They can argue they are a tech company all they want but unless they make it a requirement that all drivers who sign up with them use a licensed taxi as the transport vehicle and have a class 1, 2 or 4 license, they are breaking the law. These laws exist to protect consumers. Yes, they also cost consumers money, but I think that is better than the alternative. Plenty of warning about avoiding unlicensed and unregulated cabs in countries that don't enforce it.

 

My point was that the owners of Uber are not the ones driving.  They're also not the ones paying for car insurance and taking on the risks of the transportation.  What they are doing is taking huge amounts of venture capital and using that to undermine existing transport infrastructures.  Uber is cheaper than a taxi right now, because right now they can exploit their sub-contractors (because Uber drivers aren't employees, which helps insulate Uber from labour laws and liability) and their capital.

 

Meanwhile, as passengers, you are taking more risks than you do getting into a cab or limo.

*shrugs* It'll be interesting to see how it shakes out.

[LJ]

But would you extend that logic to hardware stores, restaurants or chiropractors?  

If you opened a hardware store and paid no taxes or fees or didn't comply with any rules or regulations the other hardware stores had to, then yes.

 

OTOH there are franchises, like Subway that will sell anybody a franchise and allow them to open anywhere, right next door to an existing one if they want to. But they are both playing on a level field, so I don't have a problem with it. Would never invest in a Subway franchise though.

[spanky123]

Read in businessweek that Uber is testing a new service that will allow drivers with free time to provide home delivery service as well. Makes sense but opens up all new sorts of potential issues.

I don't like regulation any more than the next person but when it comes to services where safety may be at stake then I don't trust free enterprise to set and police their own rules.

[VicHockeyFan]

I don't like regulation any more than the next person but when it comes to services where safety may be at stake then I don't trust free enterprise to set and police their own rules.

 

Why?  You know what industry has surprisingly little government regulation, and product safety is a huge thing for them?  Both the food retailing and restaurant business.  These businesses seem to self-regulate quite well.

[jklymak]

Why?  You know what industry has surprisingly little government regulation, and product safety is a huge thing for them?  Both the food retailing and restaurant business.  These businesses seem to self-regulate quite well.

 

What?  These are two of the most heavily inspected industries around.  

[VicHockeyFan]

What?  These are two of the most heavily inspected industries around.  

 

Restaurants and food stores get a visit once every couple months at best from VIHA.  The people storing, cooking and handling your food require no licencing or certification*.  There is no regulation as to where the food comes from, and no reporting or record-keeping required.

 

*You can have a restaurant with 14 cooks on and only one person needs to have a basic foodsafe level training, and it can be your hostess or janitor if you want.

 

There really is very little regulation.

[Greg]

Read in businessweek that Uber is testing a new service that will allow drivers with free time to provide home delivery service as well. Makes sense but opens up all new sorts of potential issues.

I don't like regulation any more than the next person but when it comes to services where safety may be at stake then I don't trust free enterprise to set and police their own rules.

Free enterprise with very limited regulation as been working for pizza delivery for some time, and when I was a kid 12-year-olds could handle newspaper routes, so I'm not sure there is much of a case here to demand regulation for delivery services. Taxi drivers and similar services should probably have some modest regulations pertaining to driver qualifications and insurance coverage, but that isn't really what the taxi groups want in most cities, they seem to normally push for government imposed restrictions on competition which is a whole other thing.

[VicHockeyFan]

Free enterprise with very limited regulation as been working for pizza delivery for some time, and when I was a kid 12-year-olds could handle newspaper routes, so I'm not sure there is much of a case here to demand regulation for delivery services. Taxi drivers and similar services should probably have some modest regulations pertaining to driver qualifications and insurance coverage, but that isn't really what the taxi groups want in most cities, they seem to normally push for government imposed restrictions on competition which is a whole other thing.

 

Yes, in most cases they want a cap on the number of licenses available.

[Jason-L]

Uber seems a bit skeezy ... 

 

http://talkingpoints...ritical-of-uber

 

http://www.salon.com...mpanys_critics/

Edited by Jason-L, 18 November 2014 - 08:28 AM.

[Coreyburger]

Uber is super skeezy. They are also engaging in anti-compeititve behaviour toward other ride-"share" services.

[spanky123]

Uber seems a bit skeezy ... 
 
http://talkingpoints...ritical-of-uber
 
http://www.salon.com...mpanys_critics/

This is what happens when execs drink too much of their own kool-aid and egos take over.

Edited by spanky123, 18 November 2014 - 08:48 AM.

[VicHockeyFan]

http://www.huffingto..._n_6174604.html

 

Vancouver Man Dressed As Rooster Offers Free Rides 

 

 

Interestingly, this is the same Kyle MacDonald who made headlines back in 2005 for bartering his way from a red paperclip to a home in Saskatchewan, reports CTV News.

 

[Jason-L]

And more Uber sleaze:

 

http://www.gizmag.co...-android/34962/

 

So yeah, I'm not super enthused to see them coming here.

[Mike K.]

Its interedting how Uber gets such a bad rap in the media, by various lobbyist organizations and governments are clamping down, but ad blockers on the internet, essentially hijacking the revenue websites make and in some cases displaying ads for a fee to adblock users, get a pass by society and are defended to extremes.

[VicHockeyFan]

Its interedting how Uber gets such a bad rap in the media, by various lobbyist organizations and governments are clamping down, but ad blockers on the internet, essentially hijacking the revenue websites make and in some cases displaying ads for a fee to adblock users, get a pass by society and are defended to extremes.

 

The latter is not easy for many to understand.  Uber is easy to figure out.  Quite frankly Uber gets a ton of free press.  It's amazing how much they get.  Their name recognition is crazy.  I can't name any cab companies in any city outside of here and maybe Vancouver, maybe guess at New York, other than "Yellow Cabs".  

[Mike K.]

Sure it is. People installing ad blockers know what they're doing. They understand exactly what's happening and the implications of their decusion but try to they convince themselves otherwise.

Pay walls will become more prevalent on the internet as time goes on, due largely to ad blockers. Revenue to operate websites has to come from somewhere and the costs aren't cheap.

Edit, wait, you edited your post. But regardless my point still stands.

[jonny]

Uber certainly is an interesting concept. If I am understanding it correctly, basically anyone with a driver's license and a four door vehicle in good shape could become a part time Uber driver and drive people around in their spare time.

 

Remind me again why the taxi cab industry needs to be so heavily regulated? Why does somebody need a cab license to give me a ride for a fee? Do limo drivers have cab licenses?

[Mike K.]

Limo drivers have a different type of license but yes they are licensed and insured.