[bmohlenhoff]

I've personally never felt that Uber was a particularly innovative business. The ability to temporarily commandeer a vehicle/driver has been a thing since vehicles were invented. The only interesting thing Uber ever did was the replacement of inefficient centralized dispatch of resources with their tech stack that directly connects consumers with suppliers.

It does not surprise me in the slightest that it doesn't translate well to other industries. If it did, I would expect to see a greater variety of preexisting businesses utilizing centralized dispatch in a manner similar to how the taxi/black car industry operated pre-Uber. Given that these are few and far between, I can only assume that either nobody thought of doing this before (unlikely) or that it's simply a losing business proposition.

[dandare]

Let's not forget Uber somehow magically bypassed the old taxi licence/disc system. IMHO if existing taxi services could get rid of all the fees and regulations they would be only slightly less effective as Uber.

[karmacondon]

I still think that Uber's biggest innovation was charging 30% less than cab companies. Given a smart phone, I have 0 problem looking up a cab company and calling them (in most cases). And New York City cabs have had apps for years.

The Uber app has a lot of details that are nice, but not essential. The minute they no longer have the cheapest fares, I'll use any other solution.

[Grishnakh]

You're forgetting the quality control that Uber imposes on drivers through multiple mechanisms.

Maybe it isn't too bad in your particular corner of NYC, but in most other places, taxis are just horrible. They're dirty, nasty vehicles that are falling apart; the drivers won't take credit/debit cards and demand cash; the drivers drive you around in circles to get a bigger fare; the drivers are rude, don't speak English, etc. There's a reason so Uber has become so popular, and it's not just price.

With the reputation system, Uber lets you rate drivers, and if a driver gets too many complaints or low ratings, Uber kicks them out. Regular cab companies don't do this. Uber integrates GPS navigation, so your driver doesn't drive you in circles. Cab companies don't do this; they insist their drivers have "valuable local knowledge" (yeah, of the best ways of fleecing you). Uber doesn't let you pay in cash, all payment goes through their app; cab companies have broken (or "broken") card readers in their cars.

You should take a flight to San Francisco and take some cabs there. I hear that's a particularly interesting experience.

[prodigal_erik]

Uber started with town cars in SF that cost more than taxis. They caught on because they actually show up when you call one, unlike taxis who might find a street hail halfway there and abandon you without notice.

[soperj]

I think the surge pricing is something that hasn't been seen before.