UberX is getting even cheaper...

https://blog.uber.com/SFSummerPromo

by zouko • 12 years ago

13 10 12 years ago

blog.uber.com

ntaylor• 12 years ago

...in some San Francisco areas, for a limited time.

rtpg2• 12 years ago

I feel like this race to the bottom is going to be a real issue for drivers at one point. What signals are the market going to send that drivers aren't earning enough? Or is cab driving going to become a "part-time job " for everyone?

dclusin• 12 years ago

When the fares do not support car upkeep + owners time value they will stop getting lower. Assuming all uber drivers are behaving rationally (not a dig at uber, just that people do irrational stuff all the time).

jmckib2• 12 years ago

Supply and demand: http://www.investopedia.com/university/economics/economics3....

rtpg2• 12 years ago

Except here the drivers are not setting the price, Uber is. This is effectively a monopoly of two markets (both between the drivers and Uber, and Uber and the customers). Supply and demand don't magically make things better if there's no, or limited choice.

I'm not aware of the capital costs of entering a market like Uber, but I feel like it's probably pretty high (esp. considering their rollout techniques like '2 free weeks of rides'). This is basically exactly what happened to telecom service: There might be a bunch of services but locally drivers will only have the choice between one or two.

"They could get other jobs" you might say, but people tend to overestimate the amount of jobs available (or rather, the variety of the skillsets these drivers might have).

UK-Al05• 12 years ago

In theory low income would force drivers out of the market, thus stopping it getting lower. That is actually the "correct" price.

joelrunyon• 12 years ago

They did this in Chicago 6-8 months ago - then they tacked on a $1 "safety" fee basically making the rides the same price again.

I'm all for making rides cheaper if you want to - but don't start tacking on random fees that cancel them right out.

graupel• 12 years ago

Actually this promo is back on for Chicago as well - https://blog.uber.com/CHIuberXpricecut

secstate• 12 years ago

I feel like this HNews post is just a plug for an Uber ad. This is just a summer marketing gimmick.

UberX is getting even cheaper...

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