Is Uber a taxi service or isn’t it? The US and EU are unlikely to agree
Washington — An EU decision to treat Uber like a taxi company spotlights a trans-Atlantic divide over how governments cope with disruptive technologies, and could embolden US cities to restrict the ride-sharing service. On Wednesday, the EU court of justice ruled against Uber, which had argued that it was a technology platform connecting passengers with independent drivers, not a transportation company subject to the same rules as taxi services. In the US, states have passed broad-based laws governing ride-sharing businesses, brushing aside traditional taxi-industry regulations for Uber and Lyft. "There’s a philosophical issue that we don’t have here," said Matthew Daus, a lawyer and former chairperson of the New York City Taxi & Limousine Commission. "The US approach to policy has been more heavily driven by tech-based capitalism, while the European response has been to put the brakes on services that are not licensed businesses." The ruling comes as European authorities have battl...
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