The taxi business has always had a brutal side to it--and it's reared its head since ride-sharing services like Uber, Lyft and Sidecar have taken a chunk of the streets in the past few years. In the past, for example, multiple Uber drivers have reported instances where they were harassed by traditional taxi drivers, while some Lyft drivers experienced similar harrassment to the extent that they used their trademark moustaches as little as possible to avoid detection.
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Uber--more or less the leader of these new services--is taking inspiration from the taxi service's meaner side, according to a new report in The Verge.
The report cites internal documents and interviews with contractors that Uber hired people to request rides from Lyft and tried to recruit the drivers. According to a report in CNN Money, contractors also intentionally cancelled thousands of rides for the other services, clogging up their competition's workload and keeping potential rides from real customers.
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Uber, of course, is incensed by these claims.
"We can't successfully recruit drivers without talking to them - and that means taking a ride. We're all about more and better economic opportunity for drivers," according to a blog post on Uber's website addressing the issue. "We never use marketing tactics that prevent a driver from making their living - and that includes never intentionally canceling rides."
While these services are at the forefront of the so-called "sharing economy," it appears their tactics are far from friendly.
