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Comment by CSMastermind | Hacker News Reader

This author is clearly hostile towards Uber. That doesn't mean that their analysis is wrong, but you should read this with their bias in mind.

Personally, I find it disingenuous to say that Uber offers a worse version of traditional taxi services.

The mobile application, ease of payment, and review ability were all genuinely large improvements over traditional taxi services.

I'm less certain about the two-way marketplace model being an innovation but I think a reasonable person could come to that conclusion.

None of that means that Uber will be a financially stable company going forward nor does it mean that they're a good investment.

But it's a little unfair to pretend they've never offered anything of value.

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A major part of their value proposition was that they couldn’t decline your ride because they didn’t feel like driving to your destination which is now gone.

However that has been a lie for years now, and the updated version might actually be an improvement. Trying to go to Oakland from SF frequently led to drivers showing up and having to argue with them.

“I’m not going to Oakland, cancel the ride” “no you cancel the ride”

Or more aggravating, they figured out they could stop nearby the pickup point but out of sight to see the destination then claim that you didn’t show. This meant arguing with Uber support to get the cancellation fee dropped.

Drivers don’t know the destination before they accept the fare?

They didn’t use to, no.

This author is clearly hostile towards Uber.

Very much so, and it clouds his analysis. Especially this:

Anyone who's taken an Uber since the lockdowns lifted knows that the company's prices have skyrocketed. What you may not know (unless you drive for Uber) is that the company has also slashed driver pay over that same period – over the past year, Uber's share of each fare climbed from 18% to 28%, a 66% increase in the shareholders' claim over the fruits of Uber drivers' labor.

If Uber's share goes from 18% to 28% then the driver share goes from 82% to 72%. This is a 12% decrease that is almost certainly more than made up for by the increased fares. The 66% figure is irrelevant in the context of driver take-home pay; he's just throwing it out there because it looks big and scary.

There's also this bit:

> The idea that Uber drivers are "independent contractors" was always a tissue-thin fiction

The truth is the opposite: the idea that they are employees is a tissue-thin fiction. They supply their own equipment, set their own hours, and can drive for multiple companies. Though some individual states have tried to adopt different rules, they absolutely meet the IRS' federal definition of contractors.

This too makes it hard to take the author seriously.

LOL

Yeah sure, dude.

1: https://www.jdsupra.com/legalnews/california-court-says-uber...

2: https://www.forbes.com/sites/jackkelly/2021/02/19/uk-supreme...

3: https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/dutch-court-rules-uber-...

It's a little unfair to pretend that the author said "they've never offered anything of value," rather than stating that their offering is worse than taxi services now. Taxi services have improved in several ways since Uber's debut, including with apps.

Still, the author explains later in the piece why he believes the service is worse, and it's because Uber has given up one of its key advantages over taxi services, and riders are now less likely to be able to catch Uber rides to out of the way destinations--just like with taxis, but at a higher price.

anyone who says uber is a worse version of taxes has to be inhaling the backend of the exhaust pope.

I have travelled all over the world. Every place that doesn't have uber and only has taxes are a huge pain in the ass. They tend to be over priced and getting a taxi when you need it is a matter of luck. In mexico, I had to walk to walmart to flag a taxi and get their whatsapp. Tnen it was a matter of if he was working when I called him. IT got better when I had a dozen taxi guys on my contacts but I still had to wait for them and only If I had cash. and that was where it was good. greek islands were worse! they jsut sit around playing chess till someone comes to them for a ride and the prices were exorbitant. also in cash.

Anyone who tries to say that taxes are a better experience needs to be smacked into reality.

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