EU Decision Concerning Uber Shows Trans-Atlantic Split Over Technology

A European Union decision to treat Uber like a taxi company spotlights a trans-Atlantic divide over how governments cope with disruptive technologies and could embolden U.S. cities to restrict the ride-sharing service, according to Bloomberg.

The EU Court of Justice ruled against Uber, which had argued it’s a technology platform connecting passengers with independent drivers, not a transportation company subject to the same rules as taxi services. In the U.S., states have passed broad-based laws governing ride-sharing businesses, brushing aside traditional taxi-industry regulations for Uber and Lyft.

The ruling comes as European authorities have battled with Silicon Valley’s biggest technology companies. Clashes include Apple falling out with Ireland over a 2016 decision to pay $15 billion in back taxes, Google being hit with a record $2.8 billion fine over shopping ads, and Facebook and Twitter facing inquiries for the spread of hate speech. Paris regulators are clamping down on Airbnb, treating the home-rental website like a hotel.

The EU ruling could inspire some cities that have already had a prickly relationship with the ride-sharing services. San Francisco’s city attorney is investigating whether Uber’s service is a public nuisance. In New York, officials are mulling ways to tighten controls. And Seattle has passed an ordinance to make it easier for Uber drivers to unionize.

Uber’s EU case has been closely watched by the technology industry because of its precedent for regulating the gig economy, where freelancers make money by plying everything from spare rooms to fast-food deliveries via apps on smartphones.