5 ms·

Uber/Lift won not by being cheaper, but because their fixed fare prevented the typical taxi scams

consteval 2y ago
Again, this is a rewriting. I'm sure this played a role, but Uber fares are not actually fixed! There's no "per mile" rate, the algorithm is a complete black box! They won because they were cheaper for the consumer.
- robertlagrant 2y ago
  It's an up front cost that doesn't magically change during the journey, and you can pay on the app. That alone was an amazing selling point.
- _DeadFred_ 2y ago
  Did you never take a cab pre Uber? It was a poor experience. At best it went ok. But you have to be constantly paying attention, know the local roads (when on vacation/business that didn't work, or even when it did, you are having to straight call out old boy for being a scummy scammer and taking the wrong streets), deal with the 'sorry the mileage ticker is broken' 'sorry I can't take credit cards' after saying they did at the start. Uber fixed a TON of that experience.
  - freejazz 2y ago
    I've seen Uber come up with the most outrageous routes to take me around NYC, so I don't think this is true at all w/r/t to being something that Uber "solved."
  - consteval 2y ago
    Sure, but again, I know many people and I think consumers as a whole would happily take a shittier product if it's half the cost. The reason Uber won is because they were competitive in price. If they were not competitive in price, which they aren't now, then I am extremely confident in saying they would've went nowhere.
- eastbound 2y ago
  No really, taxis were the first thieves of the world, on paar with politicians. Look, I went to Russia, I took Yandex Taxi. I went to Indonesia and took Grub. Whether you pay double of half is i consequential compared to “Yes I take credit cards” then “Oh my credit card apparatus doesn’t work” then “Let me find an ATM for you, at your expense”. The one brand than invested on marketing is for nothing in the death of the taxis; Everyone was wishing they’d disappear. The price was the cherry on the cake, the bottle of water was the finger to every awful taxi driver that has existed in history.
- cm2012 2y ago
  As someone who grew up in NYC, lol. Taxis were horrible and tried to rip you off at least 20% of the time. Ubers have a transparent rating mechanism and transparent pricing.
  - acdha 2y ago
    Uber has a rating mechanism. They do not have transparent pricing and have a history of building tools to misrepresent their activities to legal authorities so nobody can trust them not to play games with pricing at any time in the future. Better than cabs were 15 years ago but we should expect more transparency.
  - consteval 2y ago
    Neither the pricing nor the rating are transparent. They're just kind of transparent, and you're relying on trust in Uber.
    - gs17 2y ago
      I trust Uber somewhat more than a taxi driver. So far Uber's worst to me was rides not showing up, with taxi drivers I've been essentially robbed (and in most of the world, that it was only "essentially" means I had a not so bad experience).
- inglor_cz 2y ago
  From a country which suffered from a notorious taxi mafia which is now basically extinct, Uber isn't game changing because it is cheaper. It is game changing because now the drivers have a reputation from their previous customers and you know you won't be treated like a stupid mark at best, or sexually assaulted etc. THAT was the game changer and good riddance to bad rubbish. Even such "tiny" details as the cars being clean and not smelly are, in fact, a major improvement in quality. Old-style taxi guys had zero incentive to keep their cars clean. Many smoked in them outright.
crooked-v 2y ago
Also, because you actually know whether or not a vehicle is going to show up.
freejazz 2y ago
In which city do you live?
jen20 2y ago
They won by not having a credit card machine that mysteriously broke at the end of your trip. Fixed fare was very late to Uber and Lyft.

Again, this is a rewriting. I'm sure this played a role, but Uber fares are not actually fixed! There's no "per mile" rate, the algorithm is a complete black box! They won because they were cheaper for the consumer.

robertlagrant 2y ago
It's an up front cost that doesn't magically change during the journey, and you can pay on the app. That alone was an amazing selling point.
_DeadFred_ 2y ago
Did you never take a cab pre Uber? It was a poor experience. At best it went ok. But you have to be constantly paying attention, know the local roads (when on vacation/business that didn't work, or even when it did, you are having to straight call out old boy for being a scummy scammer and taking the wrong streets), deal with the 'sorry the mileage ticker is broken' 'sorry I can't take credit cards' after saying they did at the start. Uber fixed a TON of that experience.
- freejazz 2y ago
  I've seen Uber come up with the most outrageous routes to take me around NYC, so I don't think this is true at all w/r/t to being something that Uber "solved."
- consteval 2y ago
  Sure, but again, I know many people and I think consumers as a whole would happily take a shittier product if it's half the cost. The reason Uber won is because they were competitive in price. If they were not competitive in price, which they aren't now, then I am extremely confident in saying they would've went nowhere.
eastbound 2y ago
No really, taxis were the first thieves of the world, on paar with politicians. Look, I went to Russia, I took Yandex Taxi. I went to Indonesia and took Grub. Whether you pay double of half is i consequential compared to “Yes I take credit cards” then “Oh my credit card apparatus doesn’t work” then “Let me find an ATM for you, at your expense”. The one brand than invested on marketing is for nothing in the death of the taxis; Everyone was wishing they’d disappear. The price was the cherry on the cake, the bottle of water was the finger to every awful taxi driver that has existed in history.
cm2012 2y ago
As someone who grew up in NYC, lol. Taxis were horrible and tried to rip you off at least 20% of the time. Ubers have a transparent rating mechanism and transparent pricing.
- acdha 2y ago
  Uber has a rating mechanism. They do not have transparent pricing and have a history of building tools to misrepresent their activities to legal authorities so nobody can trust them not to play games with pricing at any time in the future. Better than cabs were 15 years ago but we should expect more transparency.
- consteval 2y ago
  Neither the pricing nor the rating are transparent. They're just kind of transparent, and you're relying on trust in Uber.
  - gs17 2y ago
    I trust Uber somewhat more than a taxi driver. So far Uber's worst to me was rides not showing up, with taxi drivers I've been essentially robbed (and in most of the world, that it was only "essentially" means I had a not so bad experience).
inglor_cz 2y ago
From a country which suffered from a notorious taxi mafia which is now basically extinct, Uber isn't game changing because it is cheaper. It is game changing because now the drivers have a reputation from their previous customers and you know you won't be treated like a stupid mark at best, or sexually assaulted etc. THAT was the game changer and good riddance to bad rubbish. Even such "tiny" details as the cars being clean and not smelly are, in fact, a major improvement in quality. Old-style taxi guys had zero incentive to keep their cars clean. Many smoked in them outright.

crooked-v 2y ago

Also, because you actually know whether or not a vehicle is going to show up.

freejazz 2y ago

In which city do you live?

jen20 2y ago

They won by not having a credit card machine that mysteriously broke at the end of your trip. Fixed fare was very late to Uber and Lyft.