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Uber Sets Valuation Record of $17B in New Funding

bloomberg.com

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Re: Uber Sets Valuation Record of $17B in New Funding

#81

Post by tootie »

tomblomfield wrote: post #49
untog wrote: post #23

Earlier quoted context omitted.

They will be successful in San Francisco, of that I have no doubt. From what I understand the taxi market there is horribly broken, Uber saw a gap in the market and leapt at it. The mistake, IMO, is assuming that they will be able to replicate that in other cities. In NYC you can get a taxi 90% of the time by holding your hand up in a street corner. At peak times that's more difficult, but that's also when Uber has s…

Uber is 30-40% cheaper than London cabs. Uber has rattled the cab-drivers so much that they're staging a protest next week to try to pressure cab regulators into blocking Uber's expansion. http://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2014/may/30/will-uber-kil...

Black cabs. Car services were always cheaper. It's just illegal to hail one. Same thing in NYC.

Re: Uber Sets Valuation Record of $17B in New Funding

#82

Post by larrydag »

austenallred wrote: post #4

The "this valuation is crazy" and "this proves a bubble" comments are filling up my Twitter feed and HN, but I couldn't disagree more. Call me crazy, but I think this valuation is completely fair. For a few reasons: Uber has serious revenue. They do more trips in San Francisco than taxis do. This isn't a pie-in-the-sky "there will be money there, I'm sure of it" thing. They bring in billions, and they're starting to…

My only question is if they have serious revenue then why do they need to a valuation? Is it the expenses or the expansion that is driving the value? I'm definitely interested to see how it proves out because I agree with you that there is several different economies of scale and growth to Uber.

Re: Uber Sets Valuation Record of $17B in New Funding

#83

Post by foobarqux »

austenallred wrote: post #4

The "this valuation is crazy" and "this proves a bubble" comments are filling up my Twitter feed and HN, but I couldn't disagree more. Call me crazy, but I think this valuation is completely fair. For a few reasons: Uber has serious revenue. They do more trips in San Francisco than taxis do. This isn't a pie-in-the-sky "there will be money there, I'm sure of it" thing. They bring in billions, and they're starting to…

You haven't argued that $17B is a reasonable valuation just that the value is not zero.

Re: Uber Sets Valuation Record of $17B in New Funding

#84

Post by keithpeter »

caublestone wrote: post #65
quaunaut wrote: post #10

Prepending Edit: If you're reading this and have a lot more familiarity in how investments of this kind are made, and what kinds of things these investors are thinking, I really am making this post looking for education. I didn't finish college, and don't know a lot, but I'm trying. If you'd rather not stir the pot by talking here, my e-mail is in my profile. The one thing that makes me skeptical about this, is histo…

Before 2012 (when I started using Uber), I took a cab (outside of NYC) maybe 5 times in a year. Today, I take an uber 5 times a week. This is anecdotal but I am sure that's the market growth investors are looking at.

So is Uber 50x cheaper than taxis, or is it cheaper than your own car/pubic transport?

Note: I pay a flat monthly fee for transport (public) around £1200 a year. Trans, trams, buses.

Re: Uber Sets Valuation Record of $17B in New Funding

#85

Post by davidu »

untog wrote: post #23
austenallred wrote: post #4

The "this valuation is crazy" and "this proves a bubble" comments are filling up my Twitter feed and HN, but I couldn't disagree more. Call me crazy, but I think this valuation is completely fair. For a few reasons: Uber has serious revenue. They do more trips in San Francisco than taxis do. This isn't a pie-in-the-sky "there will be money there, I'm sure of it" thing. They bring in billions, and they're starting to…

They will be successful in San Francisco, of that I have no doubt. From what I understand the taxi market there is horribly broken, Uber saw a gap in the market and leapt at it. The mistake, IMO, is assuming that they will be able to replicate that in other cities. In NYC you can get a taxi 90% of the time by holding your hand up in a street corner. At peak times that's more difficult, but that's also when Uber has s…

The average wait time in NYC is between 5 and 9 minutes depending on time of day. But many people would say it feels worse than that at peak times (and it likely is).

People finding cabs on 5th avenue at 6pm know there are no cabs to be had. You can't just raise your hand. It could take 15 to 20 minutes to find a cab.

So suggesting that you can get a cab 90% in NYC is a statement of fact, but it's not actually true.

Facts: http://www.schallerconsult.com/taxi/taxifb.pdf

That's one of the many reasons Uber is also crushing it in NYC.

Re: Uber Sets Valuation Record of $17B in New Funding

#86

Post by uptown »

untog wrote: post #60
tomblomfield wrote: post #49

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Uber is 30-40% cheaper than London cabs. Uber has rattled the cab-drivers so much that they're staging a protest next week to try to pressure cab regulators into blocking Uber's expansion. http://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2014/may/30/will-uber-kil...

Yes, Uber is cheaper - until it isn't, when it implements surge pricing. It's a very different model, which makes direct comparisons tricky. The price of a London cab is regulated. Maybe that price is wrong. Uber can take advantage of it, but do you think the London taxi industry is really going to sit back and watch its market disappear without even trying to change price? And the cab driver protests are more rooted…

"Yes, Uber is cheaper - until it isn't"

Case in point:

https://twitter.com/newyorkcityliz/status/470010209403150336

Edit: Fixed my idiom. Thanks dragonwriter.

Re: Uber Sets Valuation Record of $17B in New Funding

#87

Post by gtirloni »

From Uber website: "Get a ride that matches your style and budget"

In the low budget/style area, they are competing with the public transportation system? Do they have all this financial/momentum muscle?

And in the high budget/style, they are competing with rich people who can own their own BMW/Ferrari with a private driver?

Who "needs a ride" and chooses an expensive "SUV". How could this thing make a difference in anyone's life? "Oh sure, today I want to go to work in a fancy car, wheew!". Perhaps Barney Stinson?

It seems there is a lot of opportunity in NOT solving the real problem (public transportation). Good for Uber.

Re: Uber Sets Valuation Record of $17B in New Funding

#88

Post by jlebar »

untog wrote: post #23
austenallred wrote: post #4

The "this valuation is crazy" and "this proves a bubble" comments are filling up my Twitter feed and HN, but I couldn't disagree more. Call me crazy, but I think this valuation is completely fair. For a few reasons: Uber has serious revenue. They do more trips in San Francisco than taxis do. This isn't a pie-in-the-sky "there will be money there, I'm sure of it" thing. They bring in billions, and they're starting to…

They will be successful in San Francisco, of that I have no doubt. From what I understand the taxi market there is horribly broken, Uber saw a gap in the market and leapt at it. The mistake, IMO, is assuming that they will be able to replicate that in other cities. In NYC you can get a taxi 90% of the time by holding your hand up in a street corner. At peak times that's more difficult, but that's also when Uber has s…

> In NYC you can get a taxi 90% of the time by holding your hand up in a street corner.

Maybe you mean s/NYC/Manhattan/?

This is not true in much of the outer boroughs (and also in much of uptown Manhattan). In fact, in an attempt to address the problem, NYC created an entirely new class of cab that can only pick people up outside Manhattan.

Re: Uber Sets Valuation Record of $17B in New Funding

#89

Post by dragonwriter »

uptown wrote: post #86
untog wrote: post #60

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yes, Uber is cheaper - until it isn't, when it implements surge pricing. It's a very different model, which makes direct comparisons tricky. The price of a London cab is regulated. Maybe that price is wrong. Uber can take advantage of it, but do you think the London taxi industry is really going to sit back and watch its market disappear without even trying to change price? And the cab driver protests are more rooted…

"Yes, Uber is cheaper - until it isn't" Case in point: https://twitter.com/newyorkcityliz/status/470010209403150336 Edit: Fixed my idiom. Thanks dragonwriter.

> Case and point:

http://idioms.thefreedictionary.com/case+in+point

Re: Uber Sets Valuation Record of $17B in New Funding

#90

Post by ssully »

jasonbarone wrote: post #22

Here is some fun Uber-related stuff from Baltimore, MD: UberX is cheaper than taxis for the short trips in/around the South Baltimore downtown area (by the sports stadiums). These are the quick trips jumping around the bar/restaurant areas. An UberX is only $30-$40 from the Inner Harbor area to most metropolitan areas 20-25 minutes outside of Baltimore, which is a crazy good deal, especially if you split fares. I've…

To give a perspective from Chicago:

About a month ago my girlfriend told me how she was late for work on morning and wouldn't make it on time if she took her usual public transportation route, so she took Uber.

I was surprised because I never talked to her about Uber and I usually introduce her to things like this. Turns out its fairly popular at her school and other downtown Chicago campuses. Students just like it better then cabs and find it easier to get a good rate and nearly any time in the day.

I still have yet to use it myself, but I feel they are making huge in roads to being a common place name and that alone seems to justify this valuation. This isn't theoretical growth. They are getting huge, and its not just in the tech bubble.

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