French Uber drivers have created their own Uber
I use Uber a good amount (~10x a month) and while I like the service I just don't see why everyone is so impressed with the company.  Let's consider what people like about Uber:<p>"It's so much more convenient to use an app than a taxi dispatch" - totally true.  The taxi industry was definitely lazy. But now most Uber markets also have a competitor to dispatch a taxi by phone (Flywheel, etc).<p>"The drivers are not (jerks|unsafe|scary|etc)" - at this point half of the smart taxi drivers have gone to Uber, there's not much of a difference in driver quality.<p>I think the real thing that nobody else can do that Uber does is sell you a cheap ride.  Uber is cheaper than a taxi in almost every city (30% in my experience).  If taxis were 10% cheaper than Uber, I'd go to Flywheel immediately.  How did they achieve this low price?  Simple: by ignoring laws, not paying for expensive regulations, and passing more costs on to the driver.<p>This is not impressive to me.  I could think of 10 industries that could easily be 'disrupted' if you add the rule 'You're allowed to ignore all existing laws and regulations'.  I could provide you with a $20 massage ... assuming you don't want a licensed massage therapist.  How about a $10 light repair ... assuming you don't want a real electrician.<p>You might respond: "but habosa, who cares? You're getting a good ride at a lower price with more convenience".  My frustration comes from the precedent this sets.  Uber says that if you have enough VC funding, you can make lawbreaking and regulatory blindness a central pillar of a billion-dollar company.  There are a lot of people who have invested in credentials such as taxi medallions (or the equivalent in other industries) because they didn't have a hundred million dollars of VC funding to shake off the lawsuit.  And some Uber-like company can come into their space and instantly devalue their investment.  I don't believe the ends justify the means because soon there will be an Uber we don't like, and there will be nothing we can do about it.