Lyft vs Uber – A foregone conclusion?
The battle between ride-sharing start-ups is getting tougher. San Fransisco-based Lyft now got another $150 million in funding, just when it seemed Uber had won the war. Noted Investor Carl Icahn recently tossed his hat into the ring with a $100 million investment in Lyft, the nearest competitor to Uber in the ride-sharing business, and $50 million were raised from undisclosed investors. Icahn has declared the investment “a tremendous bargain” and suggested there is “there is room for two”.
The two companies have had radically different approaches to the market, with Uber following an extremely aggressive campaign in the US and abroad and worrying about policy and legislation issues when they arise, forcing policymakers worldwide into action sooner than they would have liked. Lyft, on the other hand, has followed what can be considered a conservative pragmatic approach and has declared that although the market abroad is on its horizon its immediate goal is to play catch-up domestically with a $2.25 trillion market in the US.
This has certainly been reflected in the numbers and expectations, with Uber making more than a dozen times of Lyft’s revenue and closing in on a $50-billion valuation versus Lyft’s $2.5 billion, Uber now has a presence in 56 countries and 250 cities, while Lyft operates in just 65 US cities. The tech and transportation industry expects Uber to lead the way in creating the next big disruptive technology to shake up the sector once again, whereas Lyft is expected to try and gain a foothold in this huge market and prove that there is room enough for both.
here can be parallels drawn with the recently billed “fight of the century” involving Mr. Nice Guy Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather with Uber’s rapid expansion approach and the subsequent threats of bans across the world and Lyft’s friendlier approach on which Lyft President and Co-Founder John Zimmer recently remarked at a TechCrunch Disrupt conference in May that “there’s been a bit of conversation about Lyft being the nice guy, and I think it’s true, I think it’s a fundamental part of our culture.”
The noise coming from the Lyft camp is clear, there is money to be made and exceptional room for growth – and now is the right time to make the move and allow the US public to make up their minds on which service they wish to take.
Whether there is room for two or there will be a knockout blow delivered in this battle – it certainly promises to have more punch than the snoozefest involving Pacquaio and Mayweather.
The battle between ride-sharing start-ups is getting tougher. San Fransisco-based Lyft now got another $150 million in funding, just when it seemed Uber had won the war. Noted Investor Carl Icahn recently tossed his hat into the ring with a $100 million investment in Lyft, the nearest competitor to Uber in the ride-sharing business, and $50 million were raised from undisclosed investors. Icahn has declared the investment "a tremendous bargain" and suggested there is "there is room for two''. The two companies have had radically different approaches to the market, with Uber following an extremely aggressive campaign in the US...
The battle between ride-sharing start-ups is getting tougher. San Fransisco-based Lyft now got another $150 million in funding, just when it seemed Uber had won the war. Noted Investor Carl Icahn recently tossed his hat into the ring with a $100 million investment in Lyft, the nearest competitor to Uber in the ride-sharing business, and $50 million were raised from undisclosed investors. Icahn has declared the investment “a tremendous bargain” and suggested there is “there is room for two”.
The two companies have had radically different approaches to the market, with Uber following an extremely aggressive campaign in the US and abroad and worrying about policy and legislation issues when they arise, forcing policymakers worldwide into action sooner than they would have liked. Lyft, on the other hand, has followed what can be considered a conservative pragmatic approach and has declared that although the market abroad is on its horizon its immediate goal is to play catch-up domestically with a $2.25 trillion market in the US.
This has certainly been reflected in the numbers and expectations, with Uber making more than a dozen times of Lyft’s revenue and closing in on a $50-billion valuation versus Lyft’s $2.5 billion, Uber now has a presence in 56 countries and 250 cities, while Lyft operates in just 65 US cities. The tech and transportation industry expects Uber to lead the way in creating the next big disruptive technology to shake up the sector once again, whereas Lyft is expected to try and gain a foothold in this huge market and prove that there is room enough for both.
here can be parallels drawn with the recently billed “fight of the century” involving Mr. Nice Guy Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather with Uber’s rapid expansion approach and the subsequent threats of bans across the world and Lyft’s friendlier approach on which Lyft President and Co-Founder John Zimmer recently remarked at a TechCrunch Disrupt conference in May that “there’s been a bit of conversation about Lyft being the nice guy, and I think it’s true, I think it’s a fundamental part of our culture.”
The noise coming from the Lyft camp is clear, there is money to be made and exceptional room for growth – and now is the right time to make the move and allow the US public to make up their minds on which service they wish to take.
Whether there is room for two or there will be a knockout blow delivered in this battle – it certainly promises to have more punch than the snoozefest involving Pacquaio and Mayweather.
