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By Kelly Faircloth 5/02 9:36am

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Taxi and Limousine Smartphone

Here We Go Again: Appeals Court Puts the Kibosh on the TLC’s Taxi Apps Pilot Program

If this back-and-forth keeps up, we’re all going to get whiplash. Bloomberg News reports that once again, the courts have blocked the Taxi and Limousine Commission’s ehail pilot program, just days after it was given the all-clear. The black car business has appealed the dismissal of its suit against the program, and an appeals court judge has granted a temporary injunction until there’s a decision.

Good thing this broke after the end of TechCrunch Disrupt, or we might have had a disruptors’ riot on our hands.  Read More

By Kelly Faircloth 5/01 3:10pm

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Look out, Jay! (Photo: screencap)

Hailo’s Now Approved for the TLC’s Taxi App Pilot, But Sidecar Sure Isn’t

Guess the Taxi and Limousine Commission is willing to let bygones be bygones. Last week, Hailo launched a “beta test” of its ehail app; almost as quickly, the TLC said that actually Uber was the only company that’d officially been accepted into the pilot program, meaning Hailo had no clearance to operate. But at a TechCrunch Disrupt panel this morning, CEO Jay Bregman announced they’ve got the go-ahead and will begin operations today.

He got a couple of minutes to shine, calling for a round of applause for the TLC, before the panel turned into a tiff between the TLC’s Ashwini Chhabra and Sidecar CEO Sunil Paul. Read More

By Kelly Faircloth 4/26 3:20pm

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Mr. Bregman (Photo: Hailo)

Hailo Launches Taxi App Beta Test; Uber Approved for TLC Pilot Program [UPDATED]

Well, that sure didn’t take long. On Tuesday, a judge dismissed the lawsuit against the city’s taxi apps pilot program. And today, Hailo began rolling out a beta test of its own app for yellow cabs.

Earlier today, “founding passengers” received a chipper email from CEO Jay Bregman, which announced: “I can’t tell you how long I have waited to say this; Hailo Beta is LIVE in New York City! Think of Hailo as The Taxi Magnet – the app that brings Yellow Cabs to you.” Read More

By Jordan Valinsky 4/12 1:50pm

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nyc_taxis1

Uber’s New Policy on Ridesharing: We’ll Start Doing It, as Long as Our Competitors Aren’t Caught

Today, Uber CEO bestowed unto the world a white paper on ridesharing. And in classic Uber fashion, the policy finds a workaround to traditional law-abiding. The company says it will launch the service if it sees its competitors (Lyft, Sidecar, etc.) operating for 30 days with “tacit approval” from law officials, i.e. if no one gets in trouble.

The San Francisco-based company said its decision was formed after seeing its ridesharing competitors circumvent laws by providing “non-licensed transportation for compensation.” Uber’s core business of being “everyone’s private driver” has caught flak from several cities for operating a livery company without official approval. Read More

By Jeremy Unger 3/06 6:51pm

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PicMonkey Collage

City Council Members Who Joined the Lawsuit Against E-Hailing Apps Received Donations from the Black Car Industry

The fight over whether smartphone apps that allow New Yorkers to hail yellow cabs will be permitted became more convoluted this afternoon, when City Council Members Ydanis Rodriguez and Elizabeth Crowley announced on the steps of City Hall that they were joining a lawsuit against the Taxi and Limousine Commission’s e-hail app pilot program. Read More

By Kelly Faircloth 2/11 2:37pm

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When the moon hits your eye etc. Flickr, Robert Couse-Baker

Nothing Says ‘I Love You’ Like an Uber Gimmick

Valentine’s Day, a holiday that exists largely to guilt the coupled into spending money and to drive the uncoupled to shell out for Match.com, falls on a Thursday this year. This is a problem, because Thursday might very well be the least romantic of all weekdays.

Well, the unlikeliest of saviors is riding to your rescue. On February 14, Uber will be offering in several cities the option of ordering a “Romance On-Demand” package, via its app. Included are a dozen long-stemmed roses and a personalized card. (Well, personalized in the sense your beloved’s name will be printed on the card. If you wanted to send something handwritten, you should have planned in advance.) Read More

By Nitasha Tiku 2/08 4:00pm

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771px-yellow_cabs_2

E-Hailing Ordeal: To Pay With a Taxi App In NYC, You Might Have to Enter a 7-Digit Code

Early adopters who have been using apps like Uber and Hailo to hail and pay taxis in cities like San Francisco, Washington D.C., and London may find the process in New York City a little less seamless.

That’s because companies that currently process credit cards in New York’s yellow cabs–Verifone and Creative Mobile Technologies–want riders to have to enter a seven-digit code (that will pop up on the Taxi TV screen) before they can pay with an app, the Taxi and Limousine Commission told Betabeat this afternoon.

In other cities, riders typically just have to tap their approval, relying on credit card info stored in the app. Read More