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The real problem with the "Uber for X" comparison is that most of these startups are just "delivery for X." Uber's core business isn't delivery. The economics o
by dawhizkid 11y ago
The real problem with the "Uber for X" comparison is that most of these startups are just "delivery for X." Uber's core business isn't delivery. The economics on both the supply and demand side are very different for Uber than, say, an Instacart or Postmates.
- danieltillett 11y agoNo Uber core business is regulation arbitrage. If the industry you are trying to disrupt is not significantly corrupt you will have problems.
- hodgesrm 11y agoPrecisely. Uber created a new market by enabling people who need rides to connect efficiently with people who can supply them. Uber works because personal automobiles are typically underutilized and cab services in many locations are awful.
- ricksplat 11y agoThis is what Hailo did https://www.hailoapp.com/ https://www.hailoapp.com/ connected existing cab drivers with customers and skipping the cab company middle man, and it's a win-win for everybody (customer, cabby, hailo) but the inneficient middle-man. Uber did more than this, it also created a new pool of "people who can supply" by hiring their own drivers with less stringent quality screening than is in many localities for standard cabs, and then charging more or less the same price for this lower quality product. In the Uber case it's a win for Uber certainly, but whether it works for customers really depends on the level of quality customers expect in a local market. Established local drivers lose out.
- hodgesrm 11y agoThanks, I unaware of Hailo. It sounds like what I was hoping services like Uber would actually be.