• EatATaco@lemm.ee
    link
    fedilink
    English
    arrow-up
    0
    arrow-down
    1
    ·
    3 months ago

    The only thing those businesses were ever missing was a good online presence and/or a smartphone app.

    Which is, of course, no small thing and the thing that makes uber/lyft thousands of times better than the car service model.

    • psilotop@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      0
      ·
      3 months ago

      I disagree with this. Uber and Lyft just did it at scale. My local car service can make a website with payment processing without knowing any coding. They don’t need a full service app with a global presence. It’s not trivial but totally doable.

      • EatATaco@lemm.ee
        link
        fedilink
        English
        arrow-up
        0
        arrow-down
        1
        ·
        3 months ago

        How old are you? Did you spend any time in the pre Uber days trying to get a cab? Wrong part of NYC? Good luck. Out in the suburbs and you don’t know a local cab company’s number? Lol never going to happen.

        The electronic payment system is not what made it such a big improvement. It’s the ability to instantly call a cab almost anywhere, at any time, with no knowledge of anything local. It’s the connection between the drivers and the passengers that was the big leap.

        • psilotop@lemmy.world
          link
          fedilink
          English
          arrow-up
          0
          ·
          3 months ago

          I grew up in New York City, called the same car service from my neighborhood wherever I was to get home. The main problem is the suburbs, I agree.