4 ms·

It makes products cheaper because it exploits workers more ruthlessly, "who's going to consider an offer to drive for UberEats?" isn't a choice where industry i

It makes products cheaper because it exploits workers more ruthlessly, "who's going to consider an offer to drive for UberEats?" isn't a choice where industry is destroyed and only a UberEats-level job is available(companies which had fair wages(taxi drivers) were driven out of the market). see this post for example with programmers : https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14334469 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14334469

prostoalex 9y ago
I don't really buy such a maximalist view. Service economy differentiates itself on a multitude of dimensions, of which price is just one. By that notion McDonald's should've driven everyone out of business because who's going to buy a $5 or $7 or $10 burger when a $1 cheeseburger is available? Gas station coffee or vending machine coffee should've destroyed all other coffee businesses, as what fool would pay $4.50 for a cup of coffee when a 50c cup is available at the corner 7-11?
- FrozenVoid 9y ago
  The competitive forces at lower segments of the market determine the overall economy. The people who serve you 4.50$ cups of coffee can't afford to drink them. When your gig-level job can't pay for 4.5$ coffee, you'll switch to lower segment too, and 4.5$ coffee becomes a luxury for a shrinking minority.
- Fnoord 9y ago
  The comparison gets moot because you typically don't pick the company who delivers. You just pick whatever's cheapest or selected by default; instead, you pick where you order your food. Because that's the largest factor affecting the quality of the food. You'll have different segments indeed. Say we keep it simple and you got two: a luxury one and one for the (poor) masses. Most people won't be able to afford the luxury one, so they'll grab the cheap one. (The cheapest one is still either not drinking coffee at all, drink it at a place where its free ie. at work, or bringing your own coffee in a vacuum can.) Generally (the exception being catering to travellers such as a drive-in near a highway) you won't see a McDs in a rich neighbourhood, and you won't see a luxury restaurant in a poor neighbourhood. Neither the customers nor the workers live nearby. Also, don't forget people are loyal to brands. As a final note, I'd be rather interested to see which local brands have disappeared over the years, if that can be attributed to fast food businesses such as McD's. As for you not buying the view, that is exactly what was being described in the link with first hand experience from a taxi driver in The Netherlands (heavily regulated market by law) which I posted elsewhere [1]. [1] http://www.taxibelangen.nl/ervaringen-ex-uber-chauffeur/ http://www.taxibelangen.nl/ervaringen-ex-uber-chauffeur/

prostoalex 9y ago

I don't really buy such a maximalist view. Service economy differentiates itself on a multitude of dimensions, of which price is just one. By that notion McDonald's should've driven everyone out of business because who's going to buy a $5 or $7 or $10 burger when a $1 cheeseburger is available? Gas station coffee or vending machine coffee should've destroyed all other coffee businesses, as what fool would pay $4.50 for a cup of coffee when a 50c cup is available at the corner 7-11?

FrozenVoid 9y ago
The competitive forces at lower segments of the market determine the overall economy. The people who serve you 4.50$ cups of coffee can't afford to drink them. When your gig-level job can't pay for 4.5$ coffee, you'll switch to lower segment too, and 4.5$ coffee becomes a luxury for a shrinking minority.
Fnoord 9y ago
The comparison gets moot because you typically don't pick the company who delivers. You just pick whatever's cheapest or selected by default; instead, you pick where you order your food. Because that's the largest factor affecting the quality of the food. You'll have different segments indeed. Say we keep it simple and you got two: a luxury one and one for the (poor) masses. Most people won't be able to afford the luxury one, so they'll grab the cheap one. (The cheapest one is still either not drinking coffee at all, drink it at a place where its free ie. at work, or bringing your own coffee in a vacuum can.) Generally (the exception being catering to travellers such as a drive-in near a highway) you won't see a McDs in a rich neighbourhood, and you won't see a luxury restaurant in a poor neighbourhood. Neither the customers nor the workers live nearby. Also, don't forget people are loyal to brands. As a final note, I'd be rather interested to see which local brands have disappeared over the years, if that can be attributed to fast food businesses such as McD's. As for you not buying the view, that is exactly what was being described in the link with first hand experience from a taxi driver in The Netherlands (heavily regulated market by law) which I posted elsewhere [1]. [1] http://www.taxibelangen.nl/ervaringen-ex-uber-chauffeur/ http://www.taxibelangen.nl/ervaringen-ex-uber-chauffeur/