[D_Alex]

This is a good example, but: have you ever dealt with airport car ride hustlers? This is what the alternative to taxi regulations looked like before smartphones enabled solutions like Uber.

Furthermore: Is there a general principle here that can be applied across a range of situations as a better alternative to government regulations?

[rohit2412]

And guess what, Uber is just subsiding rides to capture market share. With a monopoly, they'll be worse than the airport ride hustlers.