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Uber's Loss Exceeds $800M in Q3 on $1.7B in Net Revenue

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31–40 of 424 posts

Re: Uber's Loss Exceeds $800M in Q3 on $1.7B in Net Revenue

#31
post #4

Presumably this is intentional -- Uber could raise prices and make more money, but right now they're choosing to keep prices very low in order to undercut Lyft and the cab companies with the assumption that having a monopoly will return more profits in the future. At least anecdotally, here in SF Lyft is almost always more expensive than Uber.

[deleted]

Re: Uber's Loss Exceeds $800M in Q3 on $1.7B in Net Revenue

#32
post #30

My understanding is that in mature markets, Uber is profitable. The issue is that it takes a few years to become profitable in a market and so it's extreme growth pushes out profitability on the whole for a few years

Not before destroying any competition with cripplingly low rates. That's the problem: I can't hail a goddamn taxi anymore, despite it being cheaper by any back of the envelope calculation for society as a whole.

Re: Uber's Loss Exceeds $800M in Q3 on $1.7B in Net Revenue

#33

Uber is making the rest of us in SV look terrible. 1. Collect a huge pile of money at sky-high valuations from those who really should know better. 2. Ignore any sensible unit economics and undercut local taxi/transport services until those small businesses go bankrupt since they don't have Uber's money pile. 3. Evade local regulations that everyone else follows in the name of 'innovation' even though the reality is…

Huh? What's the end game?

The end game is a company with self driving cars, having SIGNIFICANTLY less overhead than they currently do with human drivers. And, probably a ton of technology patents to boot?

Yea, they're definitely a brazen company, but do you really expect anything less from a unicorn company? Very few make it this big without cutting some corners, having some connection, etc.

Re: Uber's Loss Exceeds $800M in Q3 on $1.7B in Net Revenue

#34

Uber is making the rest of us in SV look terrible. 1. Collect a huge pile of money at sky-high valuations from those who really should know better. 2. Ignore any sensible unit economics and undercut local taxi/transport services until those small businesses go bankrupt since they don't have Uber's money pile. 3. Evade local regulations that everyone else follows in the name of 'innovation' even though the reality is…

Well, about (2). Taxi got a bit cheaper. Also for peak times people use them to dodge surge pricing. It's equalizing.

There aren't any taxis anymore in SF.

Re: Uber's Loss Exceeds $800M in Q3 on $1.7B in Net Revenue

#35
post #20

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Well, about (2). Taxi got a bit cheaper. Also for peak times people use them to dodge surge pricing. It's equalizing.

Where have taxis gotten cheaper? Nowhere I've visited over the last few years.

Toronto. I haven't taken a taxi forever, but I believe they start at $3.25 (city council orders) as opposed to Uber at $2.5.

Re: Uber's Loss Exceeds $800M in Q3 on $1.7B in Net Revenue

#36
post #25
post #23

Earlier quoted context omitted.

sure it should

Why? It appears to have no value to anyone but the immediate consumer. That's not a business, it's a charity. What a collossal waste of cash.

It only has short-term consumer benefit. Once there's a lack of competition they're free to benefit themselves.

Re: Uber's Loss Exceeds $800M in Q3 on $1.7B in Net Revenue

#37
post #21
post #15

Earlier quoted context omitted.

A $25 hold for a fare that might be $15 doesn't sound unreasonable? Is ride-sharing that big of a cost for your day to day?

When you're so broke that an extra couple of dollars will put you in overdraft territory, it's not reasonable. At least they inform you in most hotels. I have not used Lyft - I would hope they do the same.

It's a hold, not a charge.

Re: Uber's Loss Exceeds $800M in Q3 on $1.7B in Net Revenue

#38
post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I tried Lyft the other day, but after they charged me $25 as an "authorization hold" without notification, I cancelled my ride and decided to stick with Uber. Note that Uber's auth charge is usually around $1. $25 may not be a significant amount for some, but it's non-trivial for a college student like myself. I would have been happy had they just notified me first instead of my bank. Terrible UX to be frank. I actua…

> I tried Lyft the other day, but after they charged me $25 as an "authorization hold" without notification, I cancelled my ride and decided to stick with Uber. Note that Uber's auth charge is usually around $1. $25 may not be a significant amount for some, but it's non-trivial for a college student like myself. Most gas pumps authorize $100. Use a credit card.

Personally I've never experienced that

Re: Uber's Loss Exceeds $800M in Q3 on $1.7B in Net Revenue

#39

Uber is making the rest of us in SV look terrible. 1. Collect a huge pile of money at sky-high valuations from those who really should know better. 2. Ignore any sensible unit economics and undercut local taxi/transport services until those small businesses go bankrupt since they don't have Uber's money pile. 3. Evade local regulations that everyone else follows in the name of 'innovation' even though the reality is…

For all the shitiness that Uber has engaged in, at least they've shown that you can get around the antiquated Medalion system.

Re: Uber's Loss Exceeds $800M in Q3 on $1.7B in Net Revenue

#40

Uber is making the rest of us in SV look terrible. 1. Collect a huge pile of money at sky-high valuations from those who really should know better. 2. Ignore any sensible unit economics and undercut local taxi/transport services until those small businesses go bankrupt since they don't have Uber's money pile. 3. Evade local regulations that everyone else follows in the name of 'innovation' even though the reality is…

Is there something akin to a city's uber manager that all drivers have to report to for the sake of noticing if someone should _not_ be driving for uber?
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