3 ms·
> The Uber app was the original innovation No it wasn't. There were a ton of taxi related apps and startups before Uber and nothing about Uber's app was partic
by harryf 7y ago
> The Uber app was the original innovation
No it wasn't. There were a ton of taxi related apps and startups before Uber and nothing about Uber's app was particularly impressive IP-wise - it's basically just distance search.
What Uber did that was unusual for a tech startup was to invest in lobbying - https://www.theverge.com/2014/12/14/7390395/uber-lobbying-steamroller https://www.theverge.com/2014/12/14/7390395/uber-lobbying-st... - it allowed them to play across regulated markets where no one else had before.
- Anderkent 7y agoThere were a ton of taxi related apps but none of them did what Uber did; at least in London. There were apps where you could book a taxi, telling them when and where to pick you up, but if you expected anyone to show up in the next 5 minutes you were crazy. And they were twice as expensive as uber, of course.
- kelnos 7y agoMy impression was the the previous tax-related apps just connected riders with the existing establishment taxi companies. They didn't have much in the realm of enforcing accountability or reliability. It was nearly the same as calling the taxi dispatcher yourself and hoping a taxi would show up, except an app would do it for you.
- standardUser 7y agoIn San Francisco there was nothing before Uber and similar companies started operating. You called a phone number (I used to have it memorized) and some surly individual would bark at you and then maybe a taxi would come in 40 minutes or maybe not. Later, the driver would explain the credit card machine was broken and you'd need to pay in cash.