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The Uber Bombshell About to Drop

danielcompton.net

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Re: The Uber Bombshell About to Drop

#321

Post by jsemrau »

dcosson wrote: post #257
passivepinetree wrote: post #155

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think you're misinterpreting what the post and the GP meant. What's at issue here isn't that Uber drivers don't get to take home X% of what the passenger pays, but rather that the cost Uber charges passengers isn't enough to keep the business afloat without a significant amount of VC funding.

I think the point of the comment was as kind of an upper bound. For instance if drivers made 100% (or more) of what the passenger pays, then Uber would be obviously not breaking even. At 65-75% it's feasible that at a certain scale Uber's cut would make them profitable.

Feasible but not likely. From this 25% to 35% Uber will still do this

1. Run their operating business - Maintain data centers - Maintain a global web infrastructure - Maintain the app

2. Run campaigns to compete in markets with strong local competition - Europe (Hailo, Car2Go, etc) - Asia (Didi, Ola, Grab, etc)

3. Finance their ongoing operations - Equity financing expensive - Debt financing hard to get at this stage and cost money too

4. Hire and retain top talent 5. Legal fees and licensing 6. Rentals for global offices 7. Fund and maintain fleet businesses 8. Invest in R&D (self-driving technology & talent) 9. Entertain M&A

So it looks they have a lot of costs on their plate which their operating business can not cover.

Re: The Uber Bombshell About to Drop

#323

Post by sashagim »

temp246810 wrote: post #18

Not related - but I do find it ironic that google is up in arms about stolen tech given Steve Jobs' vendetta against google over stolen smart phone ideas. And yes I realize that the gravity of the situation here is different but it's still an amusing thought - not sure why everyone is so offended by this comment. Regarding the lawsuit - I've learned that we have no clue what is going on behind the scenes, so why stre…

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Re: The Uber Bombshell About to Drop

#324

Post by chaser7016 »

chaser7016 wrote: post #322

Burn Uber and leave only ashes in KalaDick's hands to teach him humility! Lyft and others will rightfully take its place. No one more deserves and needs this type of lesson then that sociopath!

So he doesn't deserve this or You don't like the nickname he inspires?

Re: The Uber Bombshell About to Drop

#325

Post by defen »

joering2 wrote: post #264
kbenson wrote: post #253

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Read the original allegations, not the summary here. Just to start you off, here's some the things alleged by google you're missing from that summary: - He installed custom software to access the files. - The files were in a data store he had no normal access to. And here's my best guess as to why Google knows so much: - Google requires access to their networks using either your Google assigned device, or a pre-appro…

Thank you for this detailed summary. My point wasn't that Google doesn't have data; my point is that they want to use it as evidence.. but said evidence has been created by themselves!

There's really zero incentive for line-level engineers & security folks at Google to engage in conspiracy to defraud the court. The penalties that the involved individuals could potentially suffer would be far worse than whatever distant benefit they get from Google winning the case (and it only takes one defector to ruin your plan). It's not logically impossible for such a thing to happen, but I would consider sworn testimony from multiple Google employees "proof beyond a reasonable doubt" that the purported access did happen.

Re: The Uber Bombshell About to Drop

#326

Post by nathanaldensr »

aianus wrote: post #285
asimov_ wrote: post #188

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"Uber will pay as much as $25 million to settle a civil lawsuit with the district attorneys in Los Angeles and San Francisco" https://www.nytimes.com/2016/04/08/technology/uber-settles-s... "Uber settles driver lawsuit over background checks, to pay $7.5 million" http://www.reuters.com/article/us-uber-lawsuit-idUSKCN0Z12GS "Uber has agreed to pay $28.5 million to settle litigation brought by customers who alleged the…

Settlements are not admissions of guilt.

Nor are they admissions of innocence. However, if they were to lean one way, I'd say guilt is the direction they lean.

Re: The Uber Bombshell About to Drop

#327

Post by alpha_squared »

memmcgee wrote: post #175
salimmadjd wrote: post #46

I actually think this might be a blessing in disguise for Uber. I always argued self-driving cars would destroy Uber should Apple or Google want to enter this space. Why? Because self-driving cars are basically a fleet service driven by a software. Once you remove the driver (where Uber spent so much acquiring) The only differentiator is the consumer facing experience. Neither Uber or Lyft will have as much power as…

Uber's drivers aren't really fans of them though, nor are they loyal to a single company. Uber could disappear tomorrow and all its drivers would be fine on Lyft.

This may no longer be the case, but doesn't Lyft have a stricter vetting process than Uber? It could be that some (most, none, all?) of Uber drivers may not be that happy with Lyft.

Re: The Uber Bombshell About to Drop

#328

Post by tyingq »

arzt wrote: post #54

If this goes to a jury, could the damages shut uber down?

Hard to say. If I were Uber, and we seemed likely to lose, I would try to convey the following...

The only thing truly gained by stealing Waymos's LiDAR designs was a temporary period of lower cost , but high quality, LiDAR unit. Effectively, a short term discount. You can buy high quality today...It's just expensive. More affordable LiDAR is coming, for everyone, regardless of what Waymo does. They are not the only entity using innovation to drive the cost down.

I would try to have the punishment match that gain, versus something more catastrophic.

Of course, IANAL, and have been mystified by judgements in the past. Some were immensely lower, some higher than what seemed to make sense.

Also, who knows what else was stolen? The LiDAR stuff might just be the one Waymo could most easily demonstrate before filing suit...perhaps there's more.

Re: The Uber Bombshell About to Drop

#329

Post by randyrand »

I still love Uber and will continue to use them. They provide a great service: point A to B at a good price and no hassles. That's why I use them.

I don't care at all about the rest of the drama. It's hard to even keep up with it. I suspect most people are the same.

Re: The Uber Bombshell About to Drop

#330

Post by pm24601 »

harryh wrote: post #29

Uber passengers only pay 41% of the cost of trips, with investor capital making up the difference FWIW this assertion (which isn't really core to the central thesis of the post, but still) is wrong. That number comes from https://ftalphaville.ft.com/2016/12/01/2180647/the-taxi-unic... but the author of that story misread the data. Uber only counts their cut as revenue not the full cost of the ride. Despite this repet…

> Uber only counts their cut as revenue not the full cost of the ride.

except that revenue != income. (http://smallbusiness.chron.com/net-sales-revenue-vs-net-inco... )

> Net sales, or net revenue, is the money a company gets from doing business with its customers. Net income is profit -- what's left over after the company has accounted for all its revenue, expenses, gains, losses, taxes and other obligations.

Uber almost certainly counts the revenue. This is a standard silicon valley way of getting a higher VC valuation.

This is important because if the money is flowing through Uber's pockets then Uber has the ability to adjust the diversion of revenue into income. ( and the VCs know this )

Look at the random silicon valley startup marketplace that reports how many millions of dollars they sold. All revenue - but the income may be pitiful.

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