The "UBER case" #2: UBER bashing - not amused

The online passenger transfer service UBER is repeatedly criticized.FROM CHRISTOPH OGGENFUSS*To say it up front: I am neither an UBER shareholder nor am I involved in lobbying services for this company. The reason for my reporting is rather motivated by the fact that recent developments have shown very clearly how awkwardly changes in the digital world and innovative new business models are being handled.UBER and AmazonThe noticeable UBER bashing reminds me strongly of the time when Amazon introduced its revolutionary business model. My conviction at the time that Amazon would be successful in the long term earned me a pitying smile and I felt quite alone in this topic. Twenty years later, we know that Amazon has become the world's largest online retailer whose product range is almost only marginally related to books. Retail giants such as Walmart are increasingly wary of Amazon and see it as a serious competitor. The fact that Amazon has now also become the largest cloud provider only underlines the powerhouse that CEO Jeff Bezos has turned his company into. I also want to make it clear here that I don't think all of Amazon's activities are okay. For example, the remuneration system for temporary employees at Christmas time is absolutely disgusting - here the former Wall Street banker Bezos calculates too soberly and hugely underestimates the reputational damage to the strong Amazon brand.Success for the digital economyBut now back to the UBER bashing: UBER's value, over 40 billion dollars since the latest financing round, is a success for the digital economy. But far more groundbreaking is UBER's business model and the way it is shaking up a largely moribund industry through the clever use of technology available today. Without repeating my New York UBER experience from my last post, UBER manages to turn a cab ride into an experience and that alone is special.Not immune to misstepsUBER - like Amazon - is not immune to missteps. This has happened with unfortunate communication regarding personnel policy and gender issues in particular. At the same time, however, UBER has been very agile and clever in terms of PR and launched a nationwide campaign in the USA at Christmas time: "No Kid Hungry". UBER itself donated 1.8 million meals and passengers donated a further 3.25 million meals within a week via the UBER app. Here too, the donation campaign was cleverly linked to the existing app. The success of this campaign shows a certain sensitivity on the part of the management to react to the unfortunate communication that took place: Doing good and talking about it.Internet permeates all areas of lifeI think the example of UBER provides some generally valid insights. The internet has now penetrated almost all areas of life. This has created the conditions for disruptive business models such as UBER, Airbnb and others. To believe that the global roll-out of such powerful business models can be stopped politically or by legal pitfalls is naive or naïve. Let's remember the countless Amazon doubters twenty years ago. In the digital world, industry boundaries are of secondary importance - digital competitors are lurking everywhere.more on the UBER topic: http://www.mk-fokus.ch/der-uber-fall-helfen-proteste-gegen-disruptive-kraefte/