Occam's Banana
09-14-2015, 01:22 AM
h/t Tom DiLorenzo: https://www.lewrockwell.com/lrc-blog/compete-with-uber-or-die/
Compete with Uber or Die ...
... is the message sent to the New York City taxicab “medallion” monopoly by New York State Supreme Court Justice Allan Weis in a recent ruling (http://www.crainsnewyork.com/article/20150909/BLOGS04/150909863). The taxicab monopolists ludicrously claimed in a lawsuit that it was illegal for Uber drivers to use the internet to arrange for customers. All Hail Allan Weis!
Judge rules on taxi industry lawsuit: Compete with Uber or die
http://www.crainsnewyork.com/article/20150909/BLOGS04/150909863
Erik Engquist (09 September 2015)
A state judge has slammed the door on a legal challenge by opponents of Uber, clearing the way for the rideshare giant to run traditional taxis off the road.
In a decision unveiled Wednesday, Queens Supreme Court Justice Allan Weiss ruled that for-hire vehicles could use electronic hails to compete with yellow cabs—something they have been doing well enough to threaten the existence of the iconic 80-year-old industry.
If that means yellow-cab medallions worth a collective $10 billion or so just two years ago become worthless, the judge suggested, so be it.
“Any expectation that the medallion would function as a shield against the rapid technological advances of the modern world would not have been reasonable,” he wrote. “In this day and age, even with public utilities, investors must always be wary of new forms of competition arising from technological developments.”
The plaintiffs, led by four Queens credit unions who lent heavily to medallion buyers, plan to appeal.
“In the meantime, however, a catastrophe is unfolding, as an entire industry continues to be illegally destroyed, while elected officials allow it to happen on their watch,” their lawyer Todd Higgins said in a statement that apparently referred to defendants Mayor Bill de Blasio and Attorney General Eric Schneiderman. “It is a stunning abdication of leadership and responsibility that will haunt New York City for years to come.”
The “catastrophe” he cited is the possible slew of loan defaults in the coming months if owners stop making payments on medallions that have plunged in value since peaking at more than $1 million and don’t generate enough income for the borrowers to repay their debts. No medallions have been sold since February, when two went for $700,000 each. A wave of foreclosure auctions could reveal that the market now considers medallions to be worth substantially less, which could trigger more defaults and auctions—a so-called death spiral.
Judge Weiss made clear that that’s not his concern. “It is not the court’s function to adjust the competing political and economic interests disturbed by the introduction of Uber-type apps,” he wrote.
[... continued at link: http://www.crainsnewyork.com/article/20150909/BLOGS04/150909863 ...]
Compete with Uber or Die ...
... is the message sent to the New York City taxicab “medallion” monopoly by New York State Supreme Court Justice Allan Weis in a recent ruling (http://www.crainsnewyork.com/article/20150909/BLOGS04/150909863). The taxicab monopolists ludicrously claimed in a lawsuit that it was illegal for Uber drivers to use the internet to arrange for customers. All Hail Allan Weis!
Judge rules on taxi industry lawsuit: Compete with Uber or die
http://www.crainsnewyork.com/article/20150909/BLOGS04/150909863
Erik Engquist (09 September 2015)
A state judge has slammed the door on a legal challenge by opponents of Uber, clearing the way for the rideshare giant to run traditional taxis off the road.
In a decision unveiled Wednesday, Queens Supreme Court Justice Allan Weiss ruled that for-hire vehicles could use electronic hails to compete with yellow cabs—something they have been doing well enough to threaten the existence of the iconic 80-year-old industry.
If that means yellow-cab medallions worth a collective $10 billion or so just two years ago become worthless, the judge suggested, so be it.
“Any expectation that the medallion would function as a shield against the rapid technological advances of the modern world would not have been reasonable,” he wrote. “In this day and age, even with public utilities, investors must always be wary of new forms of competition arising from technological developments.”
The plaintiffs, led by four Queens credit unions who lent heavily to medallion buyers, plan to appeal.
“In the meantime, however, a catastrophe is unfolding, as an entire industry continues to be illegally destroyed, while elected officials allow it to happen on their watch,” their lawyer Todd Higgins said in a statement that apparently referred to defendants Mayor Bill de Blasio and Attorney General Eric Schneiderman. “It is a stunning abdication of leadership and responsibility that will haunt New York City for years to come.”
The “catastrophe” he cited is the possible slew of loan defaults in the coming months if owners stop making payments on medallions that have plunged in value since peaking at more than $1 million and don’t generate enough income for the borrowers to repay their debts. No medallions have been sold since February, when two went for $700,000 each. A wave of foreclosure auctions could reveal that the market now considers medallions to be worth substantially less, which could trigger more defaults and auctions—a so-called death spiral.
Judge Weiss made clear that that’s not his concern. “It is not the court’s function to adjust the competing political and economic interests disturbed by the introduction of Uber-type apps,” he wrote.
[... continued at link: http://www.crainsnewyork.com/article/20150909/BLOGS04/150909863 ...]