3 ms·

In general I am all for Uber and think that they are providing an interesting and creative service. That said, I don't really believe the argument that they ar

In general I am all for Uber and think that they are providing an interesting and creative service. That said, I don't really believe the argument that they are a marketplace. First, they don't allow either participant (rider or driver) to set prices. eBay has a bidding system where sellers can set price floors and buyers bid with each other. Uber abstracts the price away and sets it based on...well we don't _really_ know what they set it based on since their Surge Pricing "Algorithm" is closed source. Which plays into my second problem... Uber wants to classify drivers as contractors, which ties in nicely with their marketplace argument, but ultimately they set the price and standardize it across their service. I think Uber is the only company which can call their drivers "independent contractors" and then turn around and tell these contractors what they can "independently" charge. To forward the eBay parallel you drew, it would be like eBay telling a seller that, sure, you can sell your used Macbook Pro, but you have to set your price floor at $XXXX amount. This whole conundrum is magnified by the fact that neither driver or passenger even knows what the final price will be...so they can't accept or deny rides based on cost considerations...further taking away their purported "market" choice. Ultimately, I still generally support Uber, but (IMO) they are a service, not a marketplace.

taxicabjesus 10y ago
The only difference between "ride sharing" and a well-run taxi company using 2012-era electronic dispatch systems is that the passengers get an instantaneous report of where their vehicle is.
prostoalex 10y ago
Don't taxi companies qualify their drivers as independent contractors, while the rates are set by someone else (sometimes not even the taxi company, but some municipality)?
- gshulegaard 10y ago
  You know I am not well informed on the finer details of the traditional taxi business...but a couple of things: * Taxi companies don't portray themselves as "marketplaces" for regulatory purposes. * Taxi rates are publicly displayed and known prior to rider entering service agreement with cabbie. * If you are correct, then rates aren't sent by cab companies but a regulatory, unlike Uber who sets the pricing dynamically. Although I want to reaffirm that I am generally a supporter of Uber and similar ride services, I just don't see them as marketplaces.

taxicabjesus 10y ago

The only difference between "ride sharing" and a well-run taxi company using 2012-era electronic dispatch systems is that the passengers get an instantaneous report of where their vehicle is.

prostoalex 10y ago

Don't taxi companies qualify their drivers as independent contractors, while the rates are set by someone else (sometimes not even the taxi company, but some municipality)?

gshulegaard 10y ago
You know I am not well informed on the finer details of the traditional taxi business...but a couple of things: * Taxi companies don't portray themselves as "marketplaces" for regulatory purposes. * Taxi rates are publicly displayed and known prior to rider entering service agreement with cabbie. * If you are correct, then rates aren't sent by cab companies but a regulatory, unlike Uber who sets the pricing dynamically. Although I want to reaffirm that I am generally a supporter of Uber and similar ride services, I just don't see them as marketplaces.