Case Study on Uber's rise and Taxi Industry's Struggle

Running Head: PAPER REVIEW 0
Paper Critique Review
Case Study on Uber’s rise and Taxi Industry’s Struggle
(Student Details :)
1/17/2019

Paper Review 1
Contents
Paper Critique –Case Study.......................................................................................................2
Introduction................................................................................................................................2
Main Findings............................................................................................................................2
Regulatory reactions over Uber’s rise....................................................................................2
Taxi Industry’s reactions over Uber’s rise.............................................................................3
Uber’s effect over Passenger Transportation Market (PTM).................................................3
Analytical Review......................................................................................................................4
Summary....................................................................................................................................5
References..................................................................................................................................6

Paper Review 2
Paper Critique –Case Study
Introduction
This journal is the paper review of a case study (Taschler, 2015), which is based on
the crisis in the taxi industry as well as popularity of Uber taxi services. This case study
analysis report will include introduction, main finding, analytical review and summary of the
selected case study.
In the recent era, the taxi industry is in the middle of a catastrophe which is somehow
related with the rise of Uber taxi services. Besides, the taxi industry is currently facing
increased competition by a recent type of transportation service which is known as ride-
sharing. In this context, the appearance of taxi companies like Uber, which is the top
successful ride-sharing economy, is threatening to entire taxi industry. Uber has established
in 2009, being a ride-sharing company which is operated by partaking consumers’ info with
drivers by a mobile app (Blystone, 2018). In this way, with the newly invented technology
and innovation Uber is challenging the entire global taxi industry.
Main Findings
The selected paper (Taschler, 2015), briefly discovers the regulatory reactions and the
taxi industry’s reactions to Uber as well as argues that the rise of ride-sharing taxi services
will definitely eradicate the taxi industry’s structured domination of the Ground
Transportation Market (GTM) (Blystone, 2018). However, this case study is declaring that
the modern era’s taxi industry might sustain in a liberalized GTM if they will shift their focus
towards innovation from regulation. In this way this paper’s main finding can be seen as a
composition of following major findings:
Regulatory reactions over Uber’s rise
In the context of pro-competitive innovation, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC)
has suggested that ride-sharing is enabling customers’ choice in the recent transportation
market. Moreover, this paper is also containing an incident of letter writing through FTC to
District of Columbia Taxicab Commission which is clearly indicating the reactions of
regulatory bodies over Uber growth (Elliott, 2015). FTC has expressed their views by

Paper Review 3
considering the ride-sharing services as the more responsive industry to consumer demand.
They also expressed that ride-sharing services may promote an enhanced allocation of
resources like drivers and vehicles to the consumers. Contrary, specific vehicle requirements
by the consumers can impede competition amid ride-sharing services and taxi industry.
Furthermore, FTC has supported the system of insurance requirements and background
checks for all ride-sharing drivers.
Additionally, the Kansas state legislature suggested new legislation which needs Uber
and other ride-sharing companies to improve their background check and insurance policies
(African Antitrust, 2016). Hence, the legislation needs ride-sharing companies to execute
more background checks on the drivers from the Kansas Bureau of Investigation (KBI)
(African Antitrust, 2016). However, Uber has reacted in different ways towards these
increased regulations as Uber has stopped their operations in Kansas and similar areas. In this
context, writer of this case study (Taschler, 2015) wants to demonstrate that Uber’s act of
eliminating operations completely in some highly regulated markets is showing Uber’s
exponential growth as well as their contempt for any regulation which threatens growth.
Taxi Industry’s reactions over Uber’s rise
Furthermore, the taxi industry has articulated assorted reactions to the new regulatory
frameworks for ride-sharing economies like Uber. While the taxi industry has supported
regulation frameworks for Uber as well as rest ride sharing services, at the same time many
of the taxi companies argued that there must not be a two-tiered regulatory framework in the
transportation market. This paper is depicting that taxi companies have argued that through
failing to grip Uber to the equal regulations as other taxis, state legislatures has awarded Uber
as well as rest ride-sharing companies a biased competitive benefit.
Uber’s effect over Passenger Transportation Market (PTM)
Uber’s impact over commercial passenger transportation market is clear since its
founding in the year 2009. Since its founding, consumers started using Uber due to many
benefits like cleaner cars, lower fares, and a high-quality transportation experience. Besides,
during December 2014, Uber Taxi Company stated that they were completing more than one
million trips in a day. However, according to the customer’s perspective; Uber is still lagging
in many areas like pricing, reputation and customer safety and privacy. While consumers
consider Uber as an innovative taxi service, at the same time many of those customers and

Paper Review 4
journalists hate Uber’s way of acquiring market-share over other ride-sharing or taxi
companies.
Analytical Review
The analytical review of the case study depicting major facts like during last 6 years,
Uber Company has attained important market share in both the U.S. and other abroad
countries. Moreover, presently Uber is operating in 58 countries and hence having an
expected market value of more than $41 billion. In this way, undoubtedly Uber being a
famous ride-share economy leading each and every taxi company of the world while handling
all growth obstructing activities through their marketing strategies of competency and
survival. Additionally, the selected study is pointing out towards the success of Uber Taxi
Company over the entire taxi industry as well as other ride-sharing companies. Uber also
handled their rise obstructions in a way that it completely stopped working among those areas
which have imposed increased regulations on Uber that can restrict Company’s growth in
future. In this way, being the most popular and rising ride-sharing company Uber is trying to
gain its customers’ trust and market by providing leisure facilities, on-time pick-ups and
drops, pooling and comparatively low fares (Bond, 2014).
However, Uber’s customers and regulators have expressed major concerns about
customer safety, security and comfort (Khosrowshahi, 2017). Because Uber Taxi Company is
not following the exact similar regulations as the rest taxi industry does, also the company do
not subject to the similar background checks requirement in most of the places. Subsequently,
now days it is a common fear that Uber system’s safety and background checks are not
adequate. The reason behind above incidents can be those recent attacks on Uber’s customers
through Uber drivers and hence they amplified these fears among customers to a large extent
(Zervas, Proserpio, & Byers, 2017). Moreover, during the last decade many female
passengers have reported that the Uber drivers sexually assailed them (Zervas, Proserpio, &
Byers, 2017). For instance, one man has lost an eye after the Uber driver attacked with a
hammer on him. If the taxi industry wants to get over Uber then it is no big deal if they can
choose innovation, technology and customer opinion on the highest priority and neglect
regulations as comparative to all of above.
In this context, taxi industry can take Uber’s existing weaknesses of consumer privacy
as well as safety policies as an opportunity for adjusting their individual strategy to success in

Paper Review 5
the ride-sharing economies. The taxi industry can take advantage of the recent Uber data
breach and violation to retain those consumers who want to choose new and innovative taxi
services but at the same time they are also seeking the protected aids of the taxi industry (Lee,
2017). For an example, by providing well-trained drivers as well as improved safety
regulations taxi industry can give competition to Uber in all way. Hence, if the taxi industry
can modify their strategy from politicisation and litigations to innovation, then they may have
a chance to survive in the recent ride-sharing market (Laurell & Sandstorm, 2016). The case
study (Taschler, 2015) is clearly demonstrating the fact that for succeeding in the ride-sharing
market, the taxi industry will have to create their own mobile app for attracting travellers who
desire the convenience of utilising their smart phones for each and every daily work (Bitran,
2016). Furthermore, taxi industry should adjust their fares structure to contest the tractability
of Uber’s surge pricing methodology so that customers can be attracted towards more secured
and safe facilities provided by taxi industry. Thus, if the taxi industry will not create
innovation and adjustments into their operation, then they will ultimately become inapt for
the GTM (Nie, 2017). From the perspective of Uber’s future market share and prestige, the
Company should enhance their data (Wong , 2017), customer and cyber security to a
prestigious level so that Uber’s customers can blindly faith and use the taxi services for their
daily use (Khosrowshahi, 2017).
Summary
In conclusion, the case study provided by (Taschler, 2015), has been successfully
reviewed and analysed from all aspects. Through analysing all reactions include taxi
industries’, regulatory bodies’ and consumers’, main findings of the paper have been
concluded. Moreover, analytical review of the paper contained critique part; positive,
negative and future scope of the case study findings (Taschler, 2015). Thus, the case study
(Taschler, 2015) is clearly suggesting that rise of Uber will certainly disassemble the taxi-
industry’s controlled monopoly of the GTM. On the other hand, Uber’s weakness in the area
of customer privacy and safety has been demonstrated. Finally, the case study has highlighted
the major importance of innovation and technology among the taxi industry through
concluding that global taxi industry may survive the growth of Uber if they will emphasize
on innovation rather than regulations (Taschler, 2015).

Paper Review 6
References
African Antitrust. (2016). UBER AFRICA: INCREASED COMPETITIVENESS NOT A
BOON FOR ENTRENCHED MONOPOLIES. Retrieved from African Antitrust:
https://africanantitrust.com/2016/02/03/kenyan-cabbies-complain-the-uber-
competition-saga-reaches-east-africa/
Bitran, A. (2016). The Uber Innovations That Lyfted Our Standards out of Thin Air [BnB],
because Now, There's an App for That. Elon L. Rev., 8, 503.
Blystone, D. (2018, 08 9). The Story of Uber. Retrieved from Investopedia:
https://www.investopedia.com/articles/personal-finance/111015/story-uber.asp
Bond, A. (2014). An app for that: Local governments and the rise of the sharing economy.
Notre Dame L. Rev.Online, 90, 77.
Elliott, R. (2015). Sharing App or Regulation Hackney: Defining Uber Technologies, Inc. J.
Corp. L., 41, 727.
Khosrowshahi, D. (2017). 2016 Data Security Incident. Retrieved 10 16, 2018, from
https://www.uber.com/newsroom/2016-data-incident/
Laurell, C., & Sandstorm, C. (2016). Analysing Uber in social media—disruptive technology
or institutional disruption? International Journal of Innovation Management, 20(5),
1640013.
Lee, D. (2017). Uber concealed huge data breach. Retrieved 10 17, 2018, from
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/amp/technology-42075306
Nie, Y. (2017). How can the taxi industry survive the tide of ridesourcing? Evidence from
Shenzhen, China. Transportation Research Part C: Emerging Technologies, 79, 242-
256.
Taschler, E. (2015). A crumbling monopoly: the rise of Uber and the Taxi Industry’s struggle
to survive. Chicago: Institute for Consumer Antitrust Studies, 1-8.
Wong , J. (2017). Uber concealed massive hack that exposed data of 57m users and drivers.
Retrieved 10 16, 2018, from

Paper Review 7
https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2017/nov/21/uber-data-hack-cyber-attack
Zervas, G., Proserpio, D., & Byers, J. (2017). The rise of the sharing economy: Estimating
the impact of Airbnb on the hotel industry. Journal of Marketing Reserach, 54(5),
687-705.