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by steven2012 3925 days ago
Your theory fails because regular Uber prices are almost half the price of a regular cab, which according to you is set on behalf of the public.

The benefit of Uber setting the price is that it makes the marketplace more reliable. And it's set at a level where both drivers and riders are happy. If Uber moves to a more dynamic pricing model, it makes it a lot more unpredictable and more complex. Maybe this will be the next step they take, but so far, I think everyone likes the predictability of the timeliness as well as the price.
1 comments
hoopd 3924 days ago
Your critique fails because taxi companies and Uber have wildly different cost and operational structures. Clearly Uber is turning a healthy profit.

I agree that stable prices are important for public transportation and that people like them, but stable prices require regulation or an extremely healthy market. In this case we're seeing a change of regulatory powers.

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1024core 3924 days ago
> Clearly Uber is turning a healthy profit.

Not really. They're losing money: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-06-30/uber-bonds...

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hoopd 3924 days ago
Investing heavily in multiple new markets doesn't exactly count as losing money and it doesn't mean their business model isn't wildly profitable.
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