Except the largest barrier to entry in the cab market is politics protecting the status quo in the regulated cab business. By tearing this down, Uber is effectively paving the way for competitors such as Sidecar and Lyft to disrupt them.

Also, I personally am sick of people complaining about Surge pricing. It's supply and demand. The tradeoff is ability to get a ride. When it rains, the supply of cabs stays the same but demand sky rockets. This surplus is passed to the consumers who are lucky enough to get a cab but many are literally caught in the rain. Uber raising the price is simply allowing the person who wants the ride the most to benefit from it.