[xorcist]

Let's split up the questions and look at them one by one:

Is Uber disruptive? Probably in some places.

Why? Because some free market-liberal cooked up a way to cap the number of available taxis. Ubers skirts these restrictions by loudly proclaiming not to be taxis in various creative ways, thereby lowering their price structure.

How could this be done in other markets? Definitions matter. Could you raise funding by callling it something else? Very unlikely (it's hard to deny why people send you money). Could you sell useless medicine by calling it something else? Very likely (see "homeopathy", "natural medicine").