抵制出租車,優步在全球掀起反壟斷浪潮

File picture shows London taxis blocking the Mall leading to Buchingham Palace during a protest by drivers against mobile phone app Uber (AFP Photo/Carl Court)

倫敦出租車堵住購物中心通往白金漢宮的通路，此時出租車司機正抗議打車軟件 - 優步。（法新社圖片/卡爾﹒科特）

Unlike many American startups, Uber was not founded in someone's garage, but was conceived instead on a cold night in Paris, when two tech entrepreneurs could not find a taxi.

與許多白手起家的美國公司不同，優步不是成立在某人的車庫裏；而是在巴黎的一個寒冬，兩個打不到車的技術型企業家的金點子。

Uber chief Travis Kalanick and co-founder Garrett Camp were attending the technology conference Le Web in late 2008, where they were brainstorming ideas for a new venture -- in Kalanick's terms, "jamming" like jazz musicians.

2008年末，優步的首席執行官崔維斯﹒卡蘭尼克和合作創始人格瑞特﹒坎普參加了Le Web互聯網技術大會。在那裏，他們構思出一種全新的產業 – 用卡蘭尼克的話說，優步是靈光閃現的產物，就像爵士樂者的‘即興表演'。

"There are two cities in the world that I think are the worst to get a cab -- Paris and San Francisco," Kalanick, now 38, said at a 2012 presentation in Chicago.

38歲的卡蘭尼克在2012年芝加哥的優步介紹會上說：“全世界最難打車的兩個城市，我認爲是巴黎和舊金山，”

"The idea of pushing a button and getting a ride was a magical one," he said at another event.

他也在其他場合說過：“只要按一下按鈕就能即刻享受接送服務，這是個很誘人的點子。”

The plan that began as a "timeshare limousine" service using luxury vehicles has allowed San Francisco-based Uber to grow into one of the world's largest startups, valued at some $40 billion, with operations in more than 200 cities in 54 countries around the world.

使用豪華轎車提供‘豪車租賃'服務的計劃使舊金山起家的優步成長爲世界上最大的創業公司之一，市值超過400億美元，經營範圍遍佈全球200多個城市、54個國家。

But Uber's growth has also generated frictions with existing taxi operations, and posed challenges for regulators.

但在成長過程中，優步與現有的出租行業難免產生摩擦，同時也向行業管理者提出了新的挑戰。

While the idea began as a way for Kalanick and his friends to get a high-class ride, Uber and its chief now see their venture as a crusade against an entrenched taxi industry that, according to the startup, fails to serve consumers.

一開始，卡蘭尼克和他的朋友只是想獲得高質量的接送服務；但現在，優步公司和領導人將其視爲對抗出租行業的一次‘聖戰'。根據優步的說法，這些勢力龐大的出租車公司未能向客戶提供很好的服務。

In cities around the world, the regulated taxi industry "feels threatened by our high quality service and quick response time," Kalanick said in a 2013 interview with AFP.

在全球各個城市，出租車公司“覺得受到優步高質量服務和快速響應的威脅”。這是卡蘭尼克在2013年接受法新社採訪時的原話。

In most areas, "the taxi industry is used to being protected by rules and lobbying efforts that shield them from competition," he said.

在大部分的地區，“出租公司已經習慣了受到行規和遊說團體的保護，這使他們不必參與競爭。”

- Disruptive force -

- 破壞性的力量 –

Uber does not employ drivers or own its vehicles, but instead uses independent contractors with their own cars. As such it has become a key player in the "sharing economy", which allows the drivers to operate their own business, along with its risks and profits.

優步並不僱傭司機，也沒有自己的出租車；取而代之的是使用獨立承包商和他們的汽車。這樣的話，優步將成爲‘分享經濟'中的一個重量級玩家，使司機能自行經營、承擔風險和利潤。

Taxi drivers hold a banner during a protest against the app Uber, in Madrid on October 14, 2014 (AFP Photo/Pedro Armestre)

2014年10月14日，在馬德里的一次示威活動中，出租車司機舉牌抗議優步軟件。（法新社圖片/佩德羅﹒阿姆斯特里）

A study commissioned by Uber and led by Princeton economist Alan Kreuger found Uber drivers "generally receive higher earnings" than taxi drivers -- about $6 per hour more in the United States -- but that comparison is difficult because Uber drivers must pay certain expenses.

優步和普林斯頓的經濟學家奧蘭﹒克魯格發起的一項研究顯示，美國優步司機比普通出租司機“通常收入更高” – 每小時時薪高6美元 – 但這種比較是困難的，因爲優步司機必須支付某些費用。

The study concluded that "most driver-partners do not turn to Uber out of desperation or because they face an absence of other opportunities in the job market... but rather because the nature of the work, the flexibility, and the compensation appeals to them."

研究總結：“大部分司機選擇優步的原因不是因爲絕望，或無法在招聘市場上找到其他工作機會 … 而是優步這份工作的性質 - 更加彈性化的工作時間和更具吸引力的報酬。”

Uber allows consumers to use a smartphone app to locate a driver -- in some cities with several classes of service -- and instantly book a ride. The company motto vows to be "everyone's private driver".

客戶可以使用智能手機上的優步軟件來定位司機 – 在某些城市提供不同檔次的服務 – 和及時訂車。優步公司的口號是：“您的專屬司機”。

Since launching in 2010, Uber has also been the prime example of a "disruptive" economic force. Taxi drivers in dozens of cities have staged protests against Uber, and regulators in many cities have sought to shut it down.

成立於2010年，優步成爲了分享經濟 - 這股“破壞性”力量的最佳範例。幾十個城市的出租車司機已經發起了針對優步的抗議，許多城市的出租車行業管理者都已經試圖終止優步的業務。

New Delhi banned Uber from operating in the Indian capital after a passenger accused one of its drivers of rape. South Korea indicted Uber's founder for operating illegally.

在一位乘客指控優步司機強姦後，新德里政府禁止了優步在印度首都的業務。韓國政府則指控優步的創始人非法營業。

Taxis wait on a road in downtown Seoul on January 22, 2015, as South Kore steps up its legal battle against Uber (AFP Photo/Jung Yeon-Je)

2015年1月22日，出租車正在首爾市中心的一條馬路上待運。此時，韓國政府正發起一項抵制優步的法律訴訟。（法新社圖片/鄭研載）

The company has also seen its image tarnished by executives'gaffes, and concerns about privacy.

優步公司已經預見到管理者的失誤對於公司形象的損害，並就隱私問題表示關切。

Critics argue that Uber has fallen short on issues such as liability insurance and criminal background checks. In December, Uber said it would step up its safety measures.

有評論指出，優步在租車保險和司機的犯罪背景調查方面還有許多不足。2014年12月，優步表示將設立安全措施。

John Breyault of the National Consumers League said firms like Uber "don't fall neatly into the regulatory buckets we've seen in the past century. So it's difficult to see how to deal with events like in what happened in New Delhi, and to know where liability lies."

美國消費者聯盟的約翰﹒佈雷亞特認爲優步這樣的公司“與我們在上個世紀見到的公司不同,優步公司的責任範圍很難界定。所以，像德里發生的事（優步司機強姦乘客）如何處理，而公司又必須承擔什麼樣的責任很難分清。”

Despite that uncertainty, Uber raised a fresh $1.2 billion in venture funding in December to push its market value to $40 billion, and it now looks to continue expansion around the world.

儘管有着種種不確定性因素，優步公司還是在12月時獲得了12億美元的創業基金，進一步推升其市場價值達到400億美元。現在，優步仍沒有停下全球擴張的腳步。

- Math and logistics -

- 數學和邏輯 -

While a number of taxi and ride-share apps are also competing in the market, Kalanick said Uber has succeeded because of its investment in technology.

隨着一大票出租車和接送服務的軟件參與到市場競爭中來，卡蘭尼克認爲優步獲得成功的關鍵在於技術創新。

"People see they can push a button and a Town Car magically appears, but they don't realize all the math and logistics in making that occur," he told AFP.

他告訴法新社的記者：“人們發現，他們只要按下一個按鍵就會有一輛林肯出現在眼前。但他們沒有意識到其中涉及的數學和邏輯原理”。

Kalanick says Uber has been a positive force, and in 2015 "will generate over one million jobs in cities around the world." He brushes aside criticism of its business model

卡蘭尼克認爲優步是一股正能量，在2015年“將在全世界創造近100萬個崗位。”他對那些優步商業模式的批評不削一顧。

In Europe, where Uber faces numerous regulatory issues, Kalanick claims the company can take 400,000 cars off the road and create 50,000 jobs in the next year.

在歐洲，優步面臨許多規範問題。卡蘭尼克宣稱優步公司明年將增加40萬輛汽車並創造5萬個工作崗位。

"When you do something successful, not everybody is happy, and the older the industry you are tackling, the more protected it is by corruption or by government or by both," he said at a 2012 event at Stanford University.

他在2012年斯坦福大學的一次活動中聲稱：“當你獲得成功時，不是所有人都會高興的。你面對的行業越悠久，腐敗和（或）政府保護就越嚴密”。

"I'm not sure who gets hurt from this other than a particular incumbent industry."

“除了特定的現有產業（出租行業）之外，我不知道還有誰會受到傷害。”