No, your analysis is too superficial and rev rec is more complex than that under GAAP. It who the customer believes they are dealing with. The drivers, regardle

No, your analysis is too superficial and rev rec is more complex than that under GAAP. It who the customer believes they are dealing with. The drivers, regardless of their employment status, are looked upon as "uber drivers" and customers contact uber for refunds or disputes, not the driver. So in this example, a strong case could be made that the entire fare is revenue. The difference with Groupon is that the end merchant is never hidden from the customer, and the customer knows that the end merchant doesn't work for groupon. Groupon in this case is a facilitator for the transaction just like Expedia is a facilitator for airlines. Rev rec is complex and many layers to it. An auditor goes through a series of tests to determine whether revenue is recognizable and no single test determines it so in some senses it's more an art than a science. And I don't have a full grasp of uber's arguments to their auditors but I doubt they have a strong case for recognizing the entire fare as revenue.