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> You could easily build a company that does what Uber does in London without the hate for local Government that is ingrained into Uber's culture

You act like Uber flaunting local flaws is a flaw for the company. Ignoring 10,000 different sets of local laws in all the localities Uber operates is what made them successful.

It would have been impossible to expand as much as they had if the bothered dealing with the local bureaucrats, and they would have 10,000 sets of compliance to deal with.




This is a marvelous summation of exactly what is polarizing about Uber's business model, in specific, and the recently popular disregard for regulation and oversight of the Valley, in general.

Whether you read this as praise, or damnation, depends entirely on your belief system.


Indeed. Perhaps it would be difficult to replicate what Uber did in SF and other US cities without breaking regulations - but in London, their model is perfectly replicable, as evidenced by the fact that they were originally given a license by TfL.


But here's an even better model: 1. Do a good job 2. Consumers use your service & rely on you 3. Wait for the government to try to shut you down 4. Consumers will back you 5. Government backs down & lets you do what you want


Something else that can happen is that citizens side with their elected representatives and start boycotting you in significant numbers.


There's not going to be much public pressure on TfL to reverse this decision. Most Londoners don't use Uber, and there are plenty of alternatives.


391,499 Londoners (and counting) beg to differ: https://www.change.org/p/save-your-uber-in-london-saveyourub...


Who wants to bet this petition has been started by Uber itself? How many of these votes are bought?


How do you know that everyone who's signed it is a Londoner?


Sounds like you are endorsing the idea that laws and regulations just get in the way of business, while ignoring the purpose behind laws and regulations to begin with.




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