Our weekly wrap of good things, strange things, funny things and other things from inside the intertubes.
Browsing: Uber
Cheers NZ is encouraging New Zealanders out on the town to have conversations with their sober selves via Facebook Messenger to make sure they hydrate, eat food and go home at the time they originally planned.
Uber has been under scrutiny for its practices surrounding driver pay and licensing. Now, that anger has spilt over into its advertising, with the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) upholding a complaint that was made against one of its billboards.
With Sam being the most common unisex name among Uber riders and New Zealand in general, Uber has partnered with All Blacks Sam Cane and Sam Whitelock to promote free rides for all those who share the name.
Special Group has been appointed Uber’s creative agency across New Zealand and Australia.
As offices wind down and the summer sun takes full effect, a number of brands are giving timely warnings to drink responsibility and stay safe.
Pandora and Uber are transforming the in-car listening experience for riders, allowing them to personalise the journey with their favourite tunes following the streaming service’s integration into the rider app.
Pandora has announced a new partnership that sees the music-streaming company hitch a ride with Uber. From this week, Pandora will be integrated directly within the Uber driver app, giving drivers the ability to manage their Pandora stations and rides in a single place.
Last month, Uber transformed its back seats into a Dragon’s Den of sorts, to give Auckland entrepreneurs the chance to pitch to their business concepts to business leaders and investors. Aranui Ventures founder Robett Hollis shares three lessons he learnt at #UberPitch.
Uber is transforming its back seats into a Dragons’ Den of sorts tomorrow, giving the business thinkers of Auckland a chance to pitch their business ideas to a panel of leaders and investors who are looking for their next opportunity.
While many Kiwi mums appreciate breakfast in bed, being taken out for a meal, or watching the kids take over the meaning duties, we check out some of the brands that stepped up the game with some creative campaigns for Mother’s Day.
The story of a thieving taxi driver and an accommodating Uber driver help paint a picture as to why W3 Digital’s Mark Cameron believes that in the face of technological disruption, the best way for a business to stand out from its competition is to deliver an outstanding and integrated customer experience.
Yesterday, Uber announced via an email and social media that it would be reducing its rates by 20 percent. We asked three Uber drivers how they felt about getting their pay rates cut by 20 percent. Understandably, the response wasn’t great. And what’s more is that with the gig economy growing every year, we could soon see their disappointment spread to other industries as well.
Despite Uber taking off around the world with an ever expanding network of drivers and passengers, the struggle for women to feel safe on their journey remains an issue.
Uber has expanded its rideshare network across New Zealand by launching in Christchurch this week, the latest city on its list of 400 in over 58 countries.
The Victoria Taxi Federation’s #YourTaxis social media campaign backfired spectacularly recently when, instead of sharing good experiences, plenty decided to mention some of their bad experiences instead. So we couldn’t help but notice an ad on nzherald.co.nz for Alert Taxis labelled, intriguingly, ‘Confessions of a Taxi Driver’.
Uber has now reached one million trips in New Zealand since it launched 18 months ago and to celebrate, it’s offering its users two free rides tomorrow and has released information on its impact in the country.
Uber, the ultimate disruptor, proven perhaps by the increasingly frequent reference of other tech innovations being dubbed as “The Uber of [insert tech innovation]”. And, it’s easy to see why. Recent results show Uber for business travel is doing extremely well with several companies jumping aboard the Uber bandwagon/cab.
When it comes to surprises, the most you’re likely to get from the established taxi industry is another arbitrary fee ($3 extra to pay using EFTPOS? Come on). But, in keeping with its desire to turn the transport industry upside down, Uber often looks to surprise its existing users—and add more new ones—by delivering more than just humans. So, as part of a global campaign that is set to deliver ice cream to 253 cities on Friday, inhabitants of Auckland, Hamilton, Wellington, Christchurch and Queenstown will be able to request a tub of Giapo’s hokey pokey gelato. And it’s working with Hyundai on the promotion as well.
Whether it’s paying for a ride via Uber’s app, paying for your bus via Semble or paying for your groceries via one of the banks’ own cashless widgets, the wallet looks destined to become an anachronism. And online restaurant search and discovery platform Zomato is the latest to take away the need for them, saying it will soon let you pay for your meals out on its app and eliminate the need to wait for the bill.
Uber’s entrance into markets throughout the world has generally been typified by controversy, and the New Zealand is no different. Drivers have been arrested, the taxi lobby has come out swinging and there are some serious concerns about the company’s approach to collecting customer data. The company’s general manager Oscar peppit recently chatted to StopPress’ sister publication Idealog about these and other issues.
Sixty-seven years is a long time to watch from the sidelines. So we’ve decided to step up. In a joint venture, NZ Marketing magazine, NZRetail, StopPress and The Register will enter the business market by installing our Gravy Train™ pie-warmers in every Uber cab.
As part of a SXSW stunt for American mobile battery case company Mophie, St Bernard rescue dogs have been given smartphone battery packs instead of brandy barrels, giving some of those who tweeted the company detailing their lack of juice a much-needed charge for its Stay Powerful campaign.
Uber has delivered kittens and ice-creams as part of its promotional activities in the past. And now, as part of a campaign via Whybin\TBWA to launch the new PlayStation 4 game The Order: 1886, it’s embraced horse-power.
A Baltimore based woman used crowdfunding to pay for her expensive late night Uber ride. PLUS other crowdfunding oddities.
There’s been an explosion of transport apps in the New Zealand market in the last 18 months, and many in the industry are saying the time for traditional taxi companies to get on board is now, before they find themselves on a long journey into oblivion with the meter running. So how has the taxi market changed? And will technology bring the industry kicking and screaming into the modern world?
The internet is very good at bringing different groups together. Google, Trade Me, Ebay and Amazon have brought buyers and sellers together. Uber has brought drivers and passengers together. Airbnb has brought owners and renters together. And now a New Zealand website called madam.co.nz hopes to bring ladies of the night and those willing to pay for them together.
Uber may not be flavour of the month with the powerful taxi industry, but it’s gaining plenty of fans around the world, including Google, which invested US$258 million in it last year. And, as part of a global promotion, it’s hoping to draw attention to the on-demand driver service by offering Aucklanders a chance to have some of Auckland’s finest ice cream delivered to their door.
Ride sharing service Uber is opening its doors to Auckland passengers, with its website saying a limited numbers of cars are already available. The company is encouraging first time users to give it a try and leave feedback, and it’s offering an online fare calculator.