> Is something stopping them from doing exactly what Uber is doing I should imagine "not wanting to lose thousands/millions every month whilst they pay for peo

> Is something stopping them from doing exactly what Uber is doing I should imagine "not wanting to lose thousands/millions every month whilst they pay for people to develop software, etc." is a big factor. Life is a lot easier when you can throw money at problems like Uber, especially if you're (unfairly) subsidising your service to drive competitors into the ground.