9 ms·

My quess would be that Uber use it as a carrot for cities. Let Uber operate and we will give city official data and city planning tools for free.

gulperxcx 10y ago
Lol, nice guess
deleted 10y ago
[deleted]
thinkloop 10y ago
Possibly also better overall driving experiences are good for long term business. In the same neighborhood as Facebook working to increase access to internet world-wide, or Google Fiber forcing telcos to increase speeds and drop costs. Basically encourage others to improve the infrastructure on which you rely.
kirykl 10y ago
A win win for everyone but the drivers. Sure they can quit but doesn't excuse Uber from using its negotiating power against exploiting them wherever possible.
- zeroer 10y ago
  Don't worry. Having drivers is not the long term plan anyways.
  - jayajay 10y ago
    This. People who drive automobiles for a living should start investing in new skills now.
    - pyrale 10y ago
      They aren't paid enough to invest, though.
  - pyrale 10y ago
    The more I hear this, the more i see it as a ploy to drown the working conditions complaint. I do not believe Uber invests nearly as much in autonomous cars as it invests in challenging the law and making PR about their lobbying being a civic fight.
- synicalx 10y ago
  I think there's enough readily available information on how Uber operates for want-to-be drivers to make an informed decision on whether or not they should 'work' for Uber.
  - wpietri 10y ago
    Try talking to some ex-Uber drivers. I don't think I've spoke with one that felt adequately informed by Uber. There may be adequate information now, but only because enough people bought in to Uber's marketing had poor experiences, and have talked about them. I also don't think "enough readily available information" is a good standard to judge commerce by. There's enough readily available information out there for sufficiently prepared people to not get sucked into, say, a Ponzi scheme. But that does not absolve somebody running a scam, because they are doing their best to find people not yet prepared and then energetically deceive them. My standard is more like, "Does the entity with more power use that power in a way that the entity with less power later comes to find harmful?" By that metric, I don't think Uber scores particularly well.
    - synicalx 10y ago
      A ponzi scheme is completely different to Uber so comparing the two isn't helpful. Uber is comparable to working as an freelance/indy contractor, in fact it's almost exactly the same. Uber has always been clear about how it works for the drivers, and not reading/understanding terms and conditions isn't an excuse for not taking responsibility for yourself. Their early marketing quite literally spelled out that this is something you can do with your own pre-existing car to make a bit of extra cash on the side. In fact this is STILL the prevailing message you get from their website, let me quote a few lines at you; "Got a car? Turn it into a money machine. The city is buzzing and Uber makes it easy for you to cash in on the action. Plus, you've already got everything you need to get started." "Need something outside the 9 to 5? As an independent contractor with Uber, you’ve got freedom and flexibility to drive whenever you have time." Somehow, and I really cannot fathom how, some people have interpreted this as "Go out and buy/lease a car, we'll give you a full time job".
      - 10y ago
- fsaneq2 10y ago
  Which is a problem why? Uber is not a charity.
pdog 10y ago
It's win–win–win. If cities make improvements to their transportation infrastructure based on this data, ultimately it helps Uber deliver better service to its customers.
- djsumdog 10y ago
  Well except for the drivers that get paid less and less now. I mean we'll forget about all that once their self-driving vehicles start being deployed, right? Well until they kill people. I mean don't get me wrong, the data is valuable. But this is a company that constantly says "fuck you" to the law and fair work practices. Let's keep that in mind.
  - yummyfajitas 10y ago
    I mean, don't get me wrong, this civil rights movement is valuable. But this is a movement that constantly says "fuck you" to the law (c.f. Rosa Parks) and fair work practices (the civil rights movement favored a "race to the bottom" between white and negro workers). Uber is engaged in civil disobedience against unjust laws that exist to protect political insiders. When did this become a bad thing?
    - lgas 10y ago
      I think part of the problem is that the parallels between Rosa Parks and Travis Kalanick are not as obvious to everyone as they are to you.
      - yummyfajitas 10y ago
        What I'm pointing out is not some moral parallel between Rosa Parks and Travis Kalanick. I'm pointing out that if djsumdog's argument is valid, it applies equally well to the civil rights movement. This is a strong indication that his argument is invalid, nothing more.
        chiaro 10y ago
nnain 10y ago
This NYT article (titled, "Uber Extends an Olive Branch to Local Governments") is mostly about this sentiment - http://www.nytimes.com/2017/01/08/technology/uber-movement-traffic-data.html http://www.nytimes.com/2017/01/08/technology/uber-movement-t...

gulperxcx 10y ago

Lol, nice guess

deleted 10y ago

[deleted]

thinkloop 10y ago

Possibly also better overall driving experiences are good for long term business. In the same neighborhood as Facebook working to increase access to internet world-wide, or Google Fiber forcing telcos to increase speeds and drop costs. Basically encourage others to improve the infrastructure on which you rely.

kirykl 10y ago

A win win for everyone but the drivers. Sure they can quit but doesn't excuse Uber from using its negotiating power against exploiting them wherever possible.

zeroer 10y ago
Don't worry. Having drivers is not the long term plan anyways.
- jayajay 10y ago
  This. People who drive automobiles for a living should start investing in new skills now.
  - pyrale 10y ago
    They aren't paid enough to invest, though.
- pyrale 10y ago
  The more I hear this, the more i see it as a ploy to drown the working conditions complaint. I do not believe Uber invests nearly as much in autonomous cars as it invests in challenging the law and making PR about their lobbying being a civic fight.
synicalx 10y ago
I think there's enough readily available information on how Uber operates for want-to-be drivers to make an informed decision on whether or not they should 'work' for Uber.
- wpietri 10y ago
  Try talking to some ex-Uber drivers. I don't think I've spoke with one that felt adequately informed by Uber. There may be adequate information now, but only because enough people bought in to Uber's marketing had poor experiences, and have talked about them. I also don't think "enough readily available information" is a good standard to judge commerce by. There's enough readily available information out there for sufficiently prepared people to not get sucked into, say, a Ponzi scheme. But that does not absolve somebody running a scam, because they are doing their best to find people not yet prepared and then energetically deceive them. My standard is more like, "Does the entity with more power use that power in a way that the entity with less power later comes to find harmful?" By that metric, I don't think Uber scores particularly well.
  - synicalx 10y ago
    A ponzi scheme is completely different to Uber so comparing the two isn't helpful. Uber is comparable to working as an freelance/indy contractor, in fact it's almost exactly the same. Uber has always been clear about how it works for the drivers, and not reading/understanding terms and conditions isn't an excuse for not taking responsibility for yourself. Their early marketing quite literally spelled out that this is something you can do with your own pre-existing car to make a bit of extra cash on the side. In fact this is STILL the prevailing message you get from their website, let me quote a few lines at you; "Got a car? Turn it into a money machine. The city is buzzing and Uber makes it easy for you to cash in on the action. Plus, you've already got everything you need to get started." "Need something outside the 9 to 5? As an independent contractor with Uber, you’ve got freedom and flexibility to drive whenever you have time." Somehow, and I really cannot fathom how, some people have interpreted this as "Go out and buy/lease a car, we'll give you a full time job".
    - 10y ago
fsaneq2 10y ago
Which is a problem why? Uber is not a charity.

pdog 10y ago

It's win–win–win. If cities make improvements to their transportation infrastructure based on this data, ultimately it helps Uber deliver better service to its customers.

djsumdog 10y ago
Well except for the drivers that get paid less and less now. I mean we'll forget about all that once their self-driving vehicles start being deployed, right? Well until they kill people. I mean don't get me wrong, the data is valuable. But this is a company that constantly says "fuck you" to the law and fair work practices. Let's keep that in mind.
- yummyfajitas 10y ago
  I mean, don't get me wrong, this civil rights movement is valuable. But this is a movement that constantly says "fuck you" to the law (c.f. Rosa Parks) and fair work practices (the civil rights movement favored a "race to the bottom" between white and negro workers). Uber is engaged in civil disobedience against unjust laws that exist to protect political insiders. When did this become a bad thing?
  - lgas 10y ago
    I think part of the problem is that the parallels between Rosa Parks and Travis Kalanick are not as obvious to everyone as they are to you.
    - yummyfajitas 10y ago
      What I'm pointing out is not some moral parallel between Rosa Parks and Travis Kalanick. I'm pointing out that if djsumdog's argument is valid, it applies equally well to the civil rights movement. This is a strong indication that his argument is invalid, nothing more.
      - chiaro 10y ago

nnain 10y ago

This NYT article (titled, "Uber Extends an Olive Branch to Local Governments") is mostly about this sentiment - http://www.nytimes.com/2017/01/08/technology/uber-movement-traffic-data.html http://www.nytimes.com/2017/01/08/technology/uber-movement-t...