Hacker News Reader

Comment by overcast | Hacker News Reader

Uber needs to license their software to existing companies. Stop trying to push cab companies out of business, and start trying to be cabOS. The user experience is why we use the thing, I don't give a rats ass who is picking me up, as long as they are safe and courteous. And they come pick me up with a few taps of a phone app.

View on HN

They won't license their software any time soon. They decided against it in the earliest days and it really wouldn't fit with the Uber brand today. Maybe once they are a public, growth from new markets has slowed and they are chasing profits they sign license deals to open up otherwise closed off markets. I am skeptical that many taxi commissions in major cities would line up to license though. As of now the current system obviously works well enough for them (and that's to say nothing about the little those orgs likely trust Uber). If they have successfully banished Uber (etc) to the point where Uber wants to license software just to join the market I'd expect revenue split terms would be so unfavorable to Uber that they would not be interested.

One of the big reasons for Uber's success is that cab companies and city regulators don't want there to be a CabOS. They are actively against integrating technology into their systems and, while some of them have been forced to in recent years, they resent it and try to flout it when they can (in my experiences). It's really hard to get away from "the meter's not working"

I've been thinking about this as well and not only for Uber. Airbnb and other similar companies could create platforms to allow people to do this on their own. The sad reality, though, is you don't make billions by enabling people, you make billions by controlling people.

Yup, cabOS is a niche, even FOSS-with-SaaS company. Not a $60bb company.

You mean like Oracle, and Microsoft? Taking a small % of every cab transaction, sounds like a billion dollar business to me. Right now the only thing Uber is doing is spending more money than it makes.

Right now they take a large % of every cab transaction (done on their platform).

Right now they take nothing, since all they are doing is subsidizing the majority of the fare with VC money.

Reply on news.ycombinator.com