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This shows the problem with capitalism's winner-takes-all ethic. In America the piles of old bikes are not built by corporations, but by mom-and-pop chop-shops

This shows the problem with capitalism's winner-takes-all ethic. In America the piles of old bikes are not built by corporations, but by mom-and-pop chop-shops and self-employed bike thieves, under the benevolent watch of the local police. Clearly that is a far more sustainable approach to bike sharing, and the role of local (organic?) bike thieves and fences helps keep the benefits in the community, instead of sucking up all the profits to monocle-wearing capitalists in far-off cities. (Note: this was sarcasm.)

sealthedeal 8y ago
totes
egypturnash 8y ago
I hate to tell you this, but there are like four of these companies in Seattle now, there was a story about companies doing this same model in San Francisco except with electric scooters that people are bitching about clogging up the sidewalks; Seattle has been working with the bikeshare companies so maybe they won't end up with massive junkyards of bikes after the bikeshare #12 learns the hard way that there is only room for three bikeshare companies in one city, but I know the SF scooter companies are completely unlicensed.
- vorg 8y ago
  > the bikeshare #12 learns the hard way that there is only room for three bikeshare companies in one city Their business model isn't about getting people to use the shared bikes for a small fee. It's about getting people to pay the initial deposit for the right to easily use the bikes. There's room for more than 3 bikeshare companies doing this. By creating an oversupply from funds invested in their capital account, the company can create the illusion of having many bikes available. As soon as someone experiences even a minor problem with finding a bike from their current bikeshare company, they may sign up with and pay the deposit to another company. Although a company in theory puts the deposit into a special account and returns it to the customer on demand, in practise they don't if they go bankrupt and the deposits have already been skimmed. I experienced this trying to sign up with Mobike as a foreigner in China. After taking a 299 rmb deposit from my bank account, their app presented a screen accepting Chinese citizen ID numbers only. I couldn't find a menu option anywhere for retrieving my deposit money. What is the deposit amount for those bikeshare companies in Seattle?
  - osdiab 8y ago
    Really? I was using Mobike as a foreigner in China for a while and I don't recall them asking for a 身份证 or anything (did they ask for my passport number? I don't think they did), plus they have a pretty well-translated app and already operate in other English speaking markets including the USA and Singapore. For Mobike and Ofo they should be flush with enough money that the likelihood of them shutting down all of a sudden is relatively unlikely, but just in case when I left China I did get my deposit refunded fine.
    - vorg 8y ago
      > they have a pretty well-translated app I tried signing up one week ago. Perhaps they've changed since you were there. I used their service in WeChat linked to WeChatPay to sign up and pay the deposit, after which I hit the "enter your ID card number" snag. I also tried downloading the app on their website but it doesn't run on my phone (running Android 4.4.4) which I bought in China. Edit: I still maintain an integral part of the business model of smaller bikesharing companies is collecting the deposits and using the money for other things.
  - jonknee 8y ago
    > What is the deposit amount for those bikeshare companies in Seattle? $0 for Limebike. Your first ride is also free and they’re aggressive with promos (invite someone else, you each get $3 in credit, etc).

sealthedeal 8y ago

totes

egypturnash 8y ago

I hate to tell you this, but there are like four of these companies in Seattle now, there was a story about companies doing this same model in San Francisco except with electric scooters that people are bitching about clogging up the sidewalks; Seattle has been working with the bikeshare companies so maybe they won't end up with massive junkyards of bikes after the bikeshare #12 learns the hard way that there is only room for three bikeshare companies in one city, but I know the SF scooter companies are completely unlicensed.

vorg 8y ago
> the bikeshare #12 learns the hard way that there is only room for three bikeshare companies in one city Their business model isn't about getting people to use the shared bikes for a small fee. It's about getting people to pay the initial deposit for the right to easily use the bikes. There's room for more than 3 bikeshare companies doing this. By creating an oversupply from funds invested in their capital account, the company can create the illusion of having many bikes available. As soon as someone experiences even a minor problem with finding a bike from their current bikeshare company, they may sign up with and pay the deposit to another company. Although a company in theory puts the deposit into a special account and returns it to the customer on demand, in practise they don't if they go bankrupt and the deposits have already been skimmed. I experienced this trying to sign up with Mobike as a foreigner in China. After taking a 299 rmb deposit from my bank account, their app presented a screen accepting Chinese citizen ID numbers only. I couldn't find a menu option anywhere for retrieving my deposit money. What is the deposit amount for those bikeshare companies in Seattle?
- osdiab 8y ago
  Really? I was using Mobike as a foreigner in China for a while and I don't recall them asking for a 身份证 or anything (did they ask for my passport number? I don't think they did), plus they have a pretty well-translated app and already operate in other English speaking markets including the USA and Singapore. For Mobike and Ofo they should be flush with enough money that the likelihood of them shutting down all of a sudden is relatively unlikely, but just in case when I left China I did get my deposit refunded fine.
  - vorg 8y ago
    > they have a pretty well-translated app I tried signing up one week ago. Perhaps they've changed since you were there. I used their service in WeChat linked to WeChatPay to sign up and pay the deposit, after which I hit the "enter your ID card number" snag. I also tried downloading the app on their website but it doesn't run on my phone (running Android 4.4.4) which I bought in China. Edit: I still maintain an integral part of the business model of smaller bikesharing companies is collecting the deposits and using the money for other things.
- jonknee 8y ago
  > What is the deposit amount for those bikeshare companies in Seattle? $0 for Limebike. Your first ride is also free and they’re aggressive with promos (invite someone else, you each get $3 in credit, etc).