Monday, December 15, 2014

UPDATED--Uber Introduces Siege Pricing: Quadruples Rates During Australian Terror Evacuation

Update below.
Original post:
We saw the "storm surge" pricing last week in San Francisco and now this.
As the analyst said when looking at this chart:
http://www.incomesurfer.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/Altria-Stock-Chart.jpg

"A trend appears to be emerging".
That's Altria and the analyst said it to yours truly. Long time readers have seen the story a couple times.
From Mashable:

Uber intros surge pricing during Sydney hostage siege, then backtracks after user outcry
This post was updated at 10:45 p.m. ET to include an updated statement from Uber.
Uber briefly charged its users in downtown Sydney a minimum $100 to escape an armed hostage crisis, a result of automatic surge pricing meant to get more drivers online.
An executive in the city's Central Business District (CBD) sent Mashable screenshots of the Uber app that showed the company was charging up to four-times the normal rate because "demand is off the charts."
"I have never, ever seen it at four-times [the normal rate] and I'm a 1% top Uber user," said Matthew Leung, the user in contact with Mashable. "I understand the way the business works — higher the demand, higher the charge — but four-times at $100 minimum is ridiculous. Almost price gouging at its worst."

Another customer shared a screenshot of their "wack" fare estimate that showed a trip from an area just blocks from the siege to the airport would cost $145-185....MORE
"Uber, now introducing our Armageddon whackfare."

Update: "Economics: 'Uber's Sydney fiasco: the problem with surge pricing is everyone hates it'".