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Uber loses licence to operate in London, will still operate while appealing

(www.bbc.com)
256 points reubensutton | 3 comments | 25 Nov 19 10:19 UTC | HN request time: 0.001s | source
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thinkindie ◴[25 Nov 19 14:49 UTC] No.21628527[source]▶
have you ever wondered what makes services like Uber affordable? 1) underpaid drivers 2) VC money dropped into an otherwise unsustainable business

I'm pretty sure Uber will raise prices the moment it kills the competition

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ApolloFortyNine ◴[25 Nov 19 15:05 UTC] No.21628683[source]▶
> underpaid drivers

This is and always will be a matter of opinion.

Uber is not putting a gun to anyone's head. If it's not profitable for you to drive, you don't have to.

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criddell ◴[25 Nov 19 15:17 UTC] No.21628785[source]▶
Since drivers can't set their own rates, I've always felt the government should regulate the split. Uber's portion should be capped at something like 5%. The marginal cost for them to connect a driver to a rider is close to 0 so even 5% feels very generous.
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ma2rten ◴[25 Nov 19 15:52 UTC] No.21629173{3}[source]▶
I doubt that their margin is much higher than that after factoring in discounts.
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1. criddell ◴[25 Nov 19 16:18 UTC] No.21629558{4}[source]▶
I may be wrong, but I don't think the driver keeps 95% of the fare.
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2. ma2rten ◴[26 Nov 19 02:52 UTC] No.21635262[source]▶
Keep in mind that Uber's revenue was $3.6 billion in the last quarter, but they lost $1.2 billion. I wouldn't be surprised if their margin was negative.

Really the problem is not that Uber gets paid too much, but that drivers are underpaid. I think a minimum wage for drivers is a better solution. In California such a law is currently underway.

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3. criddell ◴[26 Nov 19 13:33 UTC] No.21638094[source]▶
I mentioned minimum wage in another comment. If a driver has the app open for four hours, they need to be paid a minimum of four hours of minimum wage.