Uber starts operating in territory

Ride-sharing service Uber started operating in the territory yesterday due to existing high demand. For the time being, only the UberBLACK service, which uses high-end vehicles, is available.
“We launched the service because of the demand and interest it has created in the territory. For now, we are only going to provide the UberBLACK services, which is the original service. This provides high-end vehicles and fares that are slightly higher than regular taxi fares”, the spokesperson for the company, Harold Li, told Business Daily.
While fares for the service are expected to be higher than regular taxi fares, they change according to peak hours and other factors. Fares are shown by the mobile application as the passenger requests the service.
The application provides an on-demand taxi service to users, but the company does not employ any taxi driver or owns any taxi car. Instead it connects drivers who drive their owns cars to passengers. Through the application, the company charges a fee from the fare paid. The passenger’s credit card is used as the sole payment method.
According to the company, prior to the launch 127,000 users had already opened the application in Macau to see if the service was available, including locals and tourists from 70 countries.
Legal issues and disputes
Since its introduction to the market, in San Francisco (United States) during June 2011, the company has attracted a great deal of criticism and prompted demonstrations worldwide by taxi drivers. Taxi drivers frequently protest about unfair competition, as Uber drivers usually are not taxi driver licence holders.
“Every market is different and the reactions are hard to compare. But what we can see is that the demand is very high and we’re very optimistic about the launching of the Uber”, Harold Li told Business Daily. When asked about the legal status of the company, he refused to comment.
In Macau, the entrance of Uber is also likely to raise legal issues, as Business Daily has learned.
“I have some doubts about the legality of this service. According to Macau law, drivers can only be paid to drive passengers if they have a taxi licence or they work for a bus company. This makes me have serious doubts about the legality of this service”, the President of the Labour Union of Macau Taxi Drivers, Tony Kuok Leong Son, told Business Daily.
“Our association represents around 80 per cent of the total 1,200 taxi drivers in Macau. As far as we’re aware, none of these drivers is involved with Uber”, he added.
Passengers approve competition
Questions about the legality of the service and the company’s attitude also raise questions for local passengers. While the President of the Macau Taxi Passengers Association, Andrew Scott, is in favour of more competition in the market, he is concerned about Uber.
“Any competition is good. I can see a few reasons Uber may not survive in Macau. One might be to do with licensing, another might be to do with pricing, and yet another might be to do with getting drivers. If Uber is able to successfully navigate these issues and stay in Macau long term, for sure there will be an improvement of services to the public”, he told Business Daily.
The representative of the Macau Taxi Passengers Association also believes that Uber will face problems with the Ggovernment because of the company’s nature, and the likely involvement of drivers without taxi licences issued by the Transport Bureau (DSAT).
“Uber has proved in many jurisdictions to be a polarizing company – being hailed by some as fantastic, but castigated by others for a wide range of bad behaviour ranging from price gouging to signing up drivers without proper checks to even assault on passengers, including sexual assault. I believe the culture of Uber and the Macau Government will likely clash”, he said.
Business Daily approached DSAT for a position on the legal status of Uber in Macau but by the time the story went to press DSAT was unable to provide an answer.
with Stephanie Lai