Uber must wonder whether its coming or going in Germany having been slapped with a nationwide injunction preventing it from operating across the country.
Media reports say the temporary injunction, issued by a court in Frankfurt, is because Uber drivers do not have the necessary commercial permits to pick up passengers.
The news comes less than a week after San Francisco-based Uber announced expansion across Germany with plans to double its size in the country by the end of the year.
Uber is currently in five cities including Berlin and Hamburg and says it is seeing huge demand in a number of cities including Stuttgart, Cologne and Bonn.
Taxi.eu, a Europe-wide taxi app service, welcomed the ruling saying it levels the playing field. In a statement, its boss Hermann Waldner, who also heads up Taxi Berlin, says it is an “important contribution to fair competiton.”
He also says the ruling should be used as an example for courts in other countries.
Under the injunction fines of up to Euro 250,000 can be imposed.
This is not the first time has come up against legal challenges as well as resistance from existing players, both at home and abroad.
In June, taxi drivers across Europe staged a mass protest against the Uber service and others which they say are unregulated.
Tnooz has contacted Uber for a comment and we can expect it to fight its corner especially given that Germany is one of its fastest growing markets.
But, you’ve got to ask where does this all end up? Will laws change to accommodate these new intermediaries such as Uber, Lyft and Airbnb?
It’s clear these companies mean business with Uber last month announcing the appointment of a former Obama campaign manager to advise it on policy and strategy.
Airbnb recruited its own head of global public policy two years ago in the face of regulatory battles and challenges from the hotels sector.
What’s also clear is the increasing demand for these types of services with Airbnb announcing integration with Concur TripLink in July and Uber announcing partnerships with TripAdvisor and TripCase last month.
Both Airbnb and Uber have also unveiled business travel divisions.
NB: Taxi image via Shutterstock.
