Scale is a meaningful thing to think about here. Many pro-Uber arguments point out how rigged against everyday drivers the medallion system in some cities was.

Scale is a meaningful thing to think about here. Many pro-Uber arguments point out how rigged against everyday drivers the medallion system in some cities was. Precarious contract labor with all the power in the medallion owner's court. In theory, "optional light second job or side work while a student" things sound great. In practice, if you find that that's not the case for the majority of these workers, and that in many cases you've just enlarged an existing problem that was there, but largely ignored, in the case of taxi drivers and some other niches... then it's time to consider regulating this new system. (The taxi system also wasn't much in the news, but this newcomer was, well, news... so that's also gonna play a role.) (You could also make full-time-employment less of a requirement for things like affordable health care - the market rates for individuals are still very different than what my employer pays for my coverage - but that's an even bigger political non-starter in the US...)