View all newsletters
Receive our newsletter - data, insights and analysis delivered to you
  1. What Is
March 27, 2017

What is Uber?

Uberisation seems to be taking over - CBR looks at the one app that started it all.

By Ellie Burns

Uber is a transportation network company, well-known for its ride-hailing taxi app.

The company has since become synonymous with disruptive technology, with the taxi app having swept the world, transforming transportation and giving a different business model, dubbed uberisation, to the world.

The pick-up location on the Uber journey started in 2009, when Garrett Camp and Travis Kalanick founded ‘UberCab’, the first iteration of today’s popular app. Interest was seen early on, with the company receiving $200,000 seed funding in 2009, adding an additional $1.25m funding in 2010.

Following a beta release in 2010, Uber officially launched in 2011 in San Francisco. By the end of this year, an astonishing $44.5m had been raised in funding and the company had made the move to today’s Uber moniker.

What is uber

From that initial launch in San Francisco, Uber started its global take-over, expanding to a new US city every month from May 2011. Its first international launch was Paris in 2011, quickly followed by Toronto, London, Sydney, and Johannesburg.

Today, Uber is available in over 60 countries and over 400 cities worldwide. The driving force behind this expansion and adoption was, of course, the technology and the business model.

Content from our partners
Fashion brands must seek digital solutions that understand the sector’s unique needs
Banks must better balance compliance with customer outreach

Taking the first core element, technology, Uber relies on app software and smartphones. Put simply, you install the Uber app on your smartphone, set a pick-up point and destination from a map and then tap to request an Uber driver.

You have a choice of cars ranging from standard to luxury, while the driver’s name, number plate and car are visible when they are on their way. Due to the GPS and map capabilities of the app, you are given a fare estimate, estimated time of arrival and shown the route the driver will take. In short, everything is transparent.

At the end of the trip, there is no need to hand over any cash as payments are taken from debit or credit cards stored in the app itself. There are also other additional features such as splitting fares with friends, connecting your smartphone music playlist to some car stereos and sharing your route with family and friends.

 

How are Uber fares calculated?

Topics in this article :
Websites in our network
Select and enter your corporate email address Tech Monitor's research, insight and analysis examines the frontiers of digital transformation to help tech leaders navigate the future. Our Changelog newsletter delivers our best work to your inbox every week.
  • CIO
  • CTO
  • CISO
  • CSO
  • CFO
  • CDO
  • CEO
  • Architect Founder
  • MD
  • Director
  • Manager
  • Other
Visit our privacy policy for more information about our services, how New Statesman Media Group may use, process and share your personal data, including information on your rights in respect of your personal data and how you can unsubscribe from future marketing communications. Our services are intended for corporate subscribers and you warrant that the email address submitted is your corporate email address.
THANK YOU