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Agree - Uber suffers from the same problem as Square. They created a new product expecting it to be stickier than it actually turned out to be. In Uber's case

Agree - Uber suffers from the same problem as Square. They created a new product expecting it to be stickier than it actually turned out to be. In Uber's case it turns out "better than a yellow cab" is a pretty low bar to clear, and neither drivers nor consumers have much loyalty and are highly price sensitive, creating a race to the bottom. In Square's case it turns out merchants will gladly use a slightly-worse iPad UI for payments if the fees are lower, and consumers don't really care regardless. Again, race to the bottom. Right now it looks like Uber is engaged in an epic price war in many markets where the prices are unsustainably low - and these prices are sustained by a combination of setting VC cash on fire and squeezing driver pay. Having no insider information into Uber, I'm a bit skeptical that they're that close to be sustainably profitable.

uptown 11y ago
Uber's problem seems to be that they need to raise prices and cut driver rates once they've captured a market and driven out competition. Either that, or they need to switch to driverless cars to eliminate that component of their business - but that seems to be a ways off, and there's no reason to think other players won't be just as successful when you're able to remove drivers, one of the larger variables, from the overall equation. https://twitter.com/neilanalien/status/627873374505562112 https://twitter.com/neilanalien/status/627873374505562112
aaroninsf 11y ago
Squeezing driver pay: indeed. My mother drives in SF for Uber and Lyft. She makes about one quarter (with the same time/schedule) she did less than two years ago. Some call this _market efficiency_ and point out this is functioning as designed. My mother, she's moving back to Washington State.
superuser2 11y ago
> "better than a yellow cab" Better than a yellow cab (UberX) isn't the interesting part of Uber's business, Pool (and a swarm of dynamically routed cars buzzing around a city, picking up and dropping off people and cargo) is. Further, that swarm becomes more cost-effective the larger it is.

uptown 11y ago

Uber's problem seems to be that they need to raise prices and cut driver rates once they've captured a market and driven out competition. Either that, or they need to switch to driverless cars to eliminate that component of their business - but that seems to be a ways off, and there's no reason to think other players won't be just as successful when you're able to remove drivers, one of the larger variables, from the overall equation. https://twitter.com/neilanalien/status/627873374505562112 https://twitter.com/neilanalien/status/627873374505562112

aaroninsf 11y ago

Squeezing driver pay: indeed. My mother drives in SF for Uber and Lyft. She makes about one quarter (with the same time/schedule) she did less than two years ago. Some call this _market efficiency_ and point out this is functioning as designed. My mother, she's moving back to Washington State.

superuser2 11y ago

> "better than a yellow cab" Better than a yellow cab (UberX) isn't the interesting part of Uber's business, Pool (and a swarm of dynamically routed cars buzzing around a city, picking up and dropping off people and cargo) is. Further, that swarm becomes more cost-effective the larger it is.