Uber must shutdown, it cannot be fixed?

By Team Asianet Newsable | First Published Jun 23, 2017, 12:53 PM IST

New report says that Uber CEO stepping down may not fix Uber's problems.
Its basic model is so flawed that Uber should simply shutdown.

Recently, Uber CEO Travis Kalanick stepped down as the CEO amid controversies ranging from sexual harassment to building software to hoodwink government rules. It is believed that Kalanick had to step down under immense investor pressure who are trying to fix the company's image. However, a Harvard Business Review report now claims that the basic model is so flawed that Uber should simply shutdown.

While Uber has introduced some key improvements when it comes to taxi services, the strategies it used to grow are being called 'plainly illegal'. "Uber’s lawyers were complicit in building a culture of illegality. At normal companies, managers look to their attorneys to advise them on how to keep their business within the law. Not at Uber, whose legal team, led by Chief Legal Officer Salle Yoo, formerly its general counsel, approved its Greyball software (which concealed the company’s practices from government investigators) and even reportedly participated in the hiring of a private investigator to interview friends and colleagues of litigation adversaries," the report adds.

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Those not in the know, Greyball software Secretive software called 'Greyball' has been deployed for years now. It helps Uber drivers steer away from threats including law enforcement officers. It helps circumvent officers in regions the ride-sharing service is deemed illegal or banned.

Here are a series of issues that have been a concern and clearly show that the company culture is questionable. The report adds that usual problems at a company can be fixed by change of leadership, but Uber's issues are rooted in its business model. And, so cannot be fixed.

For many, simply shutting down Uber would mean a huge loss for riders and stakeholders. However, the report argues putting forth Napster's case, which had its overall approach 'grounded in illegality'. It further adds that after Napster shutdown, it didn't really doom musicians and listeners, and instead we got similar, better and legal services.

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