[lawncheer]

I am from St. Louis where there is currently a restraining order due to conflicts with the local taxi union. My understanding was that Lyft had the argument of "we arent a real taxi service since the amount paid is optional, and its peer to peer", which is why they felt they could launch in markets that let taxi commissions monopolize a market. Doesn't this just turn that gray area into black and white?

[tptacek]

In many cities, the black-car market is regulated differently from taxis, and if Lyft Plus fits the definition of a black-car service that might sidestep the regulatory concerns.

[lawncheer]

Stolen from another comment http://www.theverge.com/2014/5/8/5694720/lyft-goes-after-ube...

Looks like they are selling the cars to the drivers. It's like NYC's medallion program, but weirder.