Uber

[riverbabe]

UBER = watch out for this IPO! Just got back from the low desert in Arizona (Scottsdale/Phoenix). EVERYONE there uses UBER without exception! Even the emergency room when my daughter fell and landed on both knee caps and asked for a taxi to get Rx's filled and get back to hotel, they said "call Uber". How to get to "old town Scottsdale"? Call Uber! How to get to airport? Call UBER. If you're planning a trip there, better look up your I-Tunes password to download the app, otherwise you will be stuck! P.S., there is the famous cartoon of the skeleton wearing sun-glasses, holding a half-finished margarita, lying on a beach towel that says "Yes. But it's DRY heat." 108 deg. in the shade the first day, and that's way below the "normal" with 116-122 in shade, 135 in sun, coming next week. Are these people CRAZY?

[billyjoe]

River, My neice's husband is a pilot for Key Bank. He sometimes has time to kill after dropping off executives and waiting for their return. Could be days later. Anyways once in Arizona he decided to visit Native American structures in the desert. He said it was so hot, over 120, you couldn't stay out of the car for 20 minutes at a time. One of the major cities in AZ. has contstant mist over the sidewalks or shopping would be impossible. Also tied in with Key Bank, the downtown office in Sandusky closed. The sign has changed to "Uber". I don't know what goes on there now. Maybe a central hub for scheduling?

------------------billy

[bigtruck]

People 30 and under only use Uber. Yellow taxis are a thing of the past. Uber is an incredible service and I swear by it. I took it 3x this weekend actually.

However, IPOs this big scare me after the shellacking I've taken on BABA -- I'll watch initially from the sidelines on this one.

[mrmarket]

I think it will go down a lot like the Facebook IPO...with lots of retail small fry interest. The valuations they are talking are quite ridiculous, presently but the business model makes sense. My new company essentially uses the same business concept - hub and spoke.

[riverbabe]

It's spreading like a wild fire. Now in my Canadian home town! Uber launches in Waterloo Region at 2 p.m. today



Uber

Ryan Remiorz,The Canadian Press file photoThe ride-sharing service Uber hit the road in Waterloo Region on Thursday afternoon.




Waterloo Region Record
By Paige Desmond

WATERLOO REGION — Uber is launching service today at 2 p.m. in Waterloo Region.
The announcement was made Thursday morning for new service here, in London, Guelph and Hamilton.
"It sure puts the ball back in our court in terms of bylaw," Coun. Sean Strickland said.
The Uber app allows anyone to offer rides-for-hire in their personal vehicle and allows people to book, track and pay for a ride with their smartphone.
Regional licensing staff have said Uber violates the region's taxi bylaw. It regulates the local taxi industry, and only the region can issue licences and take them away.
Staff said earlier this year that if Uber begins operating here they would consult the region's legal department on what action to take.
A review of the region's taxi bylaw is currently underway and a draft vehicle for hire bylaw that incorporates a wider breadth of transportation services, including ridesharing, is expected to be available this summer.
The local taxi industry has opposed Uber, saying it's unfair Uber drivers aren't subject to the regulations taxi drivers have to fulfil.
More to come.

Paige Desmond covers Waterloo City Hall and can be reached via Twitter @DesmondRecord

[riverbabe]

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/08/01/technology/microsoft-is-said-to-invest-in-uber.html?emc=edit_th_20150801&nl=todaysheadlines&nlid=47075250

Microsoft Said to Invest Big Sum in Uber

[riverbabe]

Some of the fired drivers had been working as cabbies for many years, Mann said. He said they were attracted to the "novelty" of Uber and are now paying for it. "We provide them with cars, insurance and fuel to go out there and provide a good living for themselves," he said. "They've been making a living for years, they've been putting bread on the table. Why risk that with this new, flashy Uber?" http://www.therecord.com/news-story/...in-spare-time/ and http://www.therecord.com/news-story/...terloo-region/

I don't get it. Entrepreneurship and competition are a BAD thing? Taxi drivers' off-duty personal activities are subject to regulation by the companies they work for? ("1984", "Brave New World"???)

[billyjoe]

It's like when cars replaced horses. Stable owners didn't like it. And Mrs.billy's grandma had to quit teaching after she was married. Imagine the scandal were a pregnant woman to be seen in the classroom.

---------------billy

[mimo_100]

If the cities eventually regulate Uber and Lyft as they do cabbies, the business model of these new companies will be weakened - I am not sure they can survive.

[riverbabe]

It's like when cars replaced horses. Stable owners didn't like it. And Mrs.billy's grandma had to quit teaching after she was married. Imagine the scandal were a pregnant woman to be seen in the classroom.

---------------billy

Billy, it was not too long ago that it was scandalous for women to work after marriage, pregnant or not. And over supper one night, I was informed by my parents that I could finish Grade 12, but then I would have to get a job and pay board. And, no college ever because "girls don't need a college education to wash diapers." Hah! Did I fool them! Of course it was because my doctor husband wanted a "trophy wife." And so I pulled out all the stops and got my PhD and have since accomplished all I possibly could while thumbing my nose at the bunch of them! And look where I am today - posting on Mr Market with la crème de la crème of stock market traders. (And personally funding 2-3 years of college for each of my 8 grandchildren, including the girls, diapers be damned! BTW, wrote several patents on diapers for P&G. heh heh heh).

[billyjoe]

River, I don't mind changing diapers. It's the only time the grandson is still. Yesterday I caught him with a screwdriver in his mouth, then a scissors, then a glue stick. Then he unprogrammed my answering machine, ate the dog's food...........and I'm exhausted. I'll never let Mrs.billy leave me alone with the kids for 15 minutes again. I miss the baby that took naps 3 months ago.

----------------billy