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There is zero barrier to entry for a rideshare service. (Just ask the city of Austin.) Absent COVID, competitors would be coming out of the woodwork to supply t

There is zero barrier to entry for a rideshare service. (Just ask the city of Austin.) Absent COVID, competitors would be coming out of the woodwork to supply this market with fairly-paid drivers. That means the cost of a ride will double, but that simply means we'll be paying taxicab rates for much better service than taxis provided in the past. We've known all along that Uber's prices were too low to be sustainable anyway.

carljv 6y ago
This. During the period where Uber and Lyft weren't operating in Austin, there were several local alternatives that popped up right away, worked just fine, operated within local regs, and that I honestly preferred service-wise. If Austin can do it, I bet California can.
- nrmitchi 6y ago
  Yes, but after that Uber and Lyft aggressively drove those local alternatives out of business by giving effectively-free rides for the next couple of months. The majority of my rides around the downtown area during that time cost me _maybe_ a few dollars out of pocket. That is if I even paid at all, vs using "credit" which seemed to be arbitrarily added to my account. It is illogical to start up a new business when it is more than likely that the previous incumbent will just come back in X number of months and operate at a loss until you're gone.
  - ntsplnkv2 6y ago
    Should be illegal
secretasiandan 6y ago
Have unicorns created an implicit threat of gambler's ruin with Uber taking the role of the house in this instance? Let's call it "startup's ruin".
ars 6y ago
> Just ask the city of Austin. https://communityimpact.com/austin/central-austin/impacts/2020/06/12/rideaustin-shuts-down-operations/ https://communityimpact.com/austin/central-austin/impacts/20... "RideAustin shuts down operations" "Other ride-hailing companies that entered the market in 2016 have also since suspended their operations in Austin. Fasten ceased its U.S. operations in 2018, and Fare closed in June 2017."
- ntsplnkv2 6y ago
  That's because the business model just doesn't work, it requires ridiculous scale and the ability to exploit workers to function - that is why Uber is so aggressive with this and even more reason to shut it down.

carljv 6y ago

This. During the period where Uber and Lyft weren't operating in Austin, there were several local alternatives that popped up right away, worked just fine, operated within local regs, and that I honestly preferred service-wise. If Austin can do it, I bet California can.

nrmitchi 6y ago
Yes, but after that Uber and Lyft aggressively drove those local alternatives out of business by giving effectively-free rides for the next couple of months. The majority of my rides around the downtown area during that time cost me _maybe_ a few dollars out of pocket. That is if I even paid at all, vs using "credit" which seemed to be arbitrarily added to my account. It is illogical to start up a new business when it is more than likely that the previous incumbent will just come back in X number of months and operate at a loss until you're gone.
- ntsplnkv2 6y ago
  Should be illegal

secretasiandan 6y ago

Have unicorns created an implicit threat of gambler's ruin with Uber taking the role of the house in this instance? Let's call it "startup's ruin".

ars 6y ago

> Just ask the city of Austin. https://communityimpact.com/austin/central-austin/impacts/2020/06/12/rideaustin-shuts-down-operations/ https://communityimpact.com/austin/central-austin/impacts/20... "RideAustin shuts down operations" "Other ride-hailing companies that entered the market in 2016 have also since suspended their operations in Austin. Fasten ceased its U.S. operations in 2018, and Fare closed in June 2017."

ntsplnkv2 6y ago
That's because the business model just doesn't work, it requires ridiculous scale and the ability to exploit workers to function - that is why Uber is so aggressive with this and even more reason to shut it down.