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Leaked Documents Suggests Uber Is 'Losing Millions'
New submitter DaneTerry88 points out an article about the financial state of Uber, poster child for the sharing economy. Documents leaked to Gawker seem to indicate the company is still far from profitable, despite its popularity. "They show operating losses of more than $100m (£65m) in the second quarter of 2014, albeit coupled with steady growth in revenue." Uber did not deny the leak, but pointed out they are still building the business, which requires a lot of investment. The company has been valued as high as $50 billion, and only a few days ago received a $100 million investment from Microsoft.
The big difference is that Amazon has pretty obvious infrastructure investments, what does Uber have? Aerons, hookers & blow?
The next round of Uber stories we'll be reading will involve their being named as co-defendants in wrongful death lawsuits involving unsafe vehicles. In my state, cabs and limos have to go through a state safety lane twice a year. Cab/chauffeur drivers have to have special training and licenses. And cab/limo companies carry PLENTY of liability insurance, and are pretty picky about who drives for them. Uber can try to hand-wave all of that, but sooner or later, huge jury payouts are going to run them into bankruptcy.