Because the traditional taxi industry is competitive, they must have been giving rides at cost. If Yellow Cab drivers, executives, or even stockholders were getting rich, greedy businessmen at Checker Cab would undercut their price, advertise their service as cheaper, and put Yellow Cab out of business. The only way taxi service could be overpriced is if the noncompetitive part of it - the government - were skimming off the top or needlessly increasing cost. Taxi drivers and dispatch companies have alleged that and claimed that the government doesn't do the same for Uber and Lyft, but aren't governments moving toward equalizing that now?
You're probably right about the origins of Uber and I just misremembered who was first with the "rideshare" label.
"Rideshare" is a historical misnomer that always rankles me because it's so nondescriptive. When Uber was new, it wasn't meant to be a taxi service; it was meant to be a carpool service. If you were headed somewhere in your car, you could use the app to find someone else who wanted to go to the same place and give the person a ride, sharing the cost. The founders probably thought that as a taxi service, it wouldn't be any cheaper for a passenger than a traditional taxi. (And we still don't know that it is; rides are subsidized by speculative investors today).
If you want a term that is both descriptive and understood, I'd go with "ride hailing company."
RIDEGURU
Because the traditional taxi industry is competitive, they must have been giving rides at cost. If Yellow Cab drivers, executives, or even stockholders were getting rich, greedy businessmen at Checker Cab would undercut their price, advertise their service as cheaper, and put Yellow Cab out of business. The only way taxi service could be overpriced is if the noncompetitive part of it - the government - were skimming off the top or needlessly increasing cost. Taxi drivers and dispatch companies have alleged that and claimed that the government doesn't do the same for Uber and Lyft, but aren't governments moving toward equalizing that now?
You're probably right about the origins of Uber and I just misremembered who was first with the "rideshare" label.
"Rideshare" is a historical misnomer that always rankles me because it's so nondescriptive. When Uber was new, it wasn't meant to be a taxi service; it was meant to be a carpool service. If you were headed somewhere in your car, you could use the app to find someone else who wanted to go to the same place and give the person a ride, sharing the cost. The founders probably thought that as a taxi service, it wouldn't be any cheaper for a passenger than a traditional taxi. (And we still don't know that it is; rides are subsidized by speculative investors today).
If you want a term that is both descriptive and understood, I'd go with "ride hailing company."