[peterwwillis]

The only economic model that make Uber and Lyft make sense is if drivers are willing to take low pay (considering all their other costs). If they make more money than cab drivers, the whole model falls apart, because then cabs will be cheaper and the service won't be competitive. (Granted, the lack of having to pay for medallions saves them a bunch of money)

I think the only long-term business plan that makes sense for them is black cars, or people who don't want the hassle of Taxis.

[sundaeofshock]

Keep in mind that uber was successful early on not because of price, but because it was significantly more reliable then a cab. I was willing to pay a bit more then a cab to get to the airport because I knew I could count on that uber to arrive at my house on time.

Uber and Lyft are not trying to be cost competitive with cabs; they are trying to be cost competitive with public transit.

[taormina]

I'm still convinced that the only innovation that ever happened in this space by Uber was the guaranteed ride. They chose to fight (ok, ignore) the taxi regulations, but from a features perspective the taxi apps already did all this. The difference was that any random person off the street could still flag your cab so in practice you rarely got a taxi if you weren't in a "hot spot". Reliability matters.