It means that if Uber might be ordered by the court to pay up to €250k per ride they offer in violation of the court’s ruling.
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The law has explicitly been designed so that rental car services do not compete with taxi services. It’s obviously from a time without mobile internet access.
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Without the umlaut, they’re just “about.”
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I completely agree.
Okay, so it seems pretty clear that Uber:
- doesn’t like following local laws (Germany, Taiwan, etc)
- treats its employees like garbage
- rips off users with variable pricing
- increases traffic congestion and air pollution
The question really is why so many countries allow them to continue operating.
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The last time I checked this, there were only a few areas of London that had restrictions on the availability of licenses because of oversubscription. If you really wanted to operate in these areas you could still get an all London license.
I think those restrictions have now been lifted.
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Just speculating, but I suspect that it may be justified on the grounds of:
a) Ensuring that the cars are regularly inspected/cleaned/maintained, and
b) Preventing the employer from excessively intruding into the personal lives of their employees.
German workplace norms are rather different from American.
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So tempted to take Uber rides in Germany right now just to make them cough up quarter million euros
Excellent idea. Take several very short rides to maximize ROI.
No, it‘s simply to make rental cars not compete with taxis.
No, the question is really why people still use uber even though they know the company is morally bankrupt.
No, its not.
Uber doesn´t make any sense in German. The word always has an Umlaut. Über with an Umlaut means both Over and About.
It’s because
cheap, convenient, ethical
is another form of Iron Triangle.
Germany’s traffic is not that dependent on taxis and there is not that much too “disrupt” for Uber in the first place. Instead of looking at the part of the ruling that seems a bit arbitrary you might look at the part where the fake entrepreneurial status of the drivers is addressed. Now that is a law that challenges Uber were most of its problems are most pressing.
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I think the name “Uber” is hinting at the meaning “above”, as e.g. in Nietsche’s “Übermensch”.
It’s part of the two tier system: you can have limousine services that run without as many regulations as a full taxi service is supposed to offer. Like how taxi drivers have to be registered in the city and prove their navigational skills without computer assistance. Taxis are also insured differently, due to the risk involved, the wear and tear on the vehicle, and so on. Uber was trying to dodge this.
Now, I keep seeing ads for Uber on the subway, and they always smack of desperation. “Hey, we’re not nearly as bad as you think! Come on, give us a try! Our drivers are all properly licensed, we promise! Please?”
Never mind that they are advertising on the subway and the bus. Munich has an excellent public transportation network, and the city has been deliberately making driving unattractive in comparison to public transportation or cycling. Uber is trying to scratch an itch that doesn’t exist here.
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Obnoxious upstart run by unethical monsters defeated by old guard monsters via regulatory capture. Yay?
Sure, Uber is awful for so many reasons, but at least in my city, the taxi industry is worse. Pointless limits on supply hoarded by a wealthy few, filthy cars with terrible plastic seats and obnoxious plastic shields, crooked drivers who take longer routes, drivers who refuse credit cards despite being legally required to accept them, loud video advertising in the seat back that you can’t shut off, drivers who have to be given directions because they don’t know the city, cars that never show up after you request them from dispatch… I could go on. Or I can push a button on my phone and Terrence shows up in his nice Corolla with a phone charger for me and takes me to the airport perfectly pleasantly.
Let’s not cheer every blow to Uber like it’s some sort of moral victory when all it means is going back to an even worse system. Uber needs to be held accountable for its shitty labor practices, spotty safety record, and general underegulation, no question. However, stories of them getting kicked out of town by the taxi lobby are just throwing the baby out with the bathwater.
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