Industry Magazine Grand General Agency Spring 2016 | Page 10

THE STORY OF UBER

The Story of Uber
AND HOW IT MIGHT AFFECT YOUR BUSINESS
BY: ALEX MANESS, CARLE PUBLISHING

THERE are two inevitable conclusions
that come from the rapid technological
development that we are currently
experiencing. The first is that the
economy (and society) will grow.
Systems and economic models that are
in place will improve and incorporate new
technologies to help make our lives easier.
The second is that industries operating
under their current models will have to
either adapt to these new technologies or
perish. The second conclusion, obviously,
is the most interesting and relevant to
businesses currently operating in the
market. Uber is an interesting case study
of this conclusion in action, though it has
been seen in many other industries as
well.
Uber, and other platforms like it
(e.g. Lyft), are based on mobile phone
applications. Anyone can sign up to be a
driver and, once approved, they will be
put into the system during their available
hours. They use their car essentially as a
taxi. When people need a ride, they go to
the Uber app, find someone local offering
these services, and then they will accept
and come pick you up, completing the
transaction like a traditional taxi would.
Except, that is, for the fact that they have
to pay by credit card through the app. This
is Uber’s way of ensuring payment. People
receiving rides will pay Uber directly, and
then Uber will pay the drivers. This is, very
different from the way traditional taxis work.

SPRING 2016

If you want some examples of other
industries that have seen similar
shakeups, here are a few of the most
glaring:
• The music industry blatantly
ignoring and dismissing digital music
options, leading to file sharing sites
like Napster, BitTorrent systems, and
companies like Apple (with iTunes)
taking over their market share.
• Kodak, one of the oldest names in
photography, filed for bankruptcy in
2012, having completely missed the boat
on digital photography and ignoring
encroachment by phones into their
market. Mobile phone photography has
shaken up the entire industry.
• Netflix, and subsequently Hulu and
Amazon, began to innovate streami