
So long Sidecar and thanks - jayzalowitz
https://medium.com/@SunilPaul/so-long-sidecar-and-thanks-74c8a0955064#.fv9fvrl5y
======
tzier
Sidecar doesn't get enough credit for starting the rideshare movement. (Uber
started the mobile-calling movement, but were black cars and TNC compliant
until they started UberX.)

Sidecar was often were piloting products a half year before Uber and Lyft
implemented them (ridesharing, Shared Rides, etc). I think Uber and Lyft won
since (a) Uber was first and had an extra 2 years of brand recognition
already, and (b) Lyft had superior marketing in their early days (bright pink
mustaches, mandatory fist bumps). As Uber/Lyft raised more money, they caught
up more - though Sidecar was still first in a lot of products (Sidecar
Deliveries, having HIPAA compliant drivers, etc.)

If I were them, I would explore the niche of regulation-friendly drivers -
e.g. HIPAA certified drivers. They've already started doing this, but I'm sure
their consumer facing product has bogged down product development and such.
The Medium post isn't clear on if they're laying off team and such, does
anyone know?

Edit: I would also explore using their logistics infrastructure and making it
available to any businesses that have their own delivery fleets, but don't
know how to optimize them. There was a Techstars co doing this
([https://routific.com/](https://routific.com/)) but I imagine Sidecar is much
further along.

~~~
vitd
Can you expand on what a HIPAA-compliant driver is? (I know what HIPPA is, I
don't understand what that has to do with driving people around.)

~~~
erichurkman
Most medical offices won't let you use regular taxis (or Uber, etc) after
major procedures. They require a personal driver (family member, friend) that
they can provide after-care instructions ("if his face starts bleeding, turn
around immediately"). There are dedicated medical taxi services that serve
this niche, typically drivers have some basic training, have easily accessible
vehicles, etc.

~~~
cballard
Uh, what happens if you walk out the door and hail a cab? How do they stop
you?

~~~
koenigdavidmj
They note that you are behaving outside medical advice, and mention that your
insurance might as a result refuse to pay for the procedure.

Whether this is actually the case is a different matter, but that veiled
threat should be enough for most.

~~~
fr11
This is a common meme, that your insurance might not pay for a procedure if
you do something against medical advice. I've had a number of doctors claim
it. It's false, thankfully.

[http://www.uchospitals.edu/news/2012/20120203-billing.html](http://www.uchospitals.edu/news/2012/20120203-billing.html)

------
mkolodny
> nearly four years ago we invented what is now known as “ridesharing”

People, including myself, were ridesharing using Craiglist for 10+ years
before Sidecar existed. It was even called ridesharing:
[https://web.archive.org/web/20011107033237/http://newyork.cr...](https://web.archive.org/web/20011107033237/http://newyork.craigslist.org/rid/)

~~~
1024core
And 10 years before that, there were rideshare boards in college campuses, so
students could coordinate rides to their hometowns or springbreak
destinations.

~~~
brianwawok
Back when I was in school we shared ponies. Ponysharing would allow 2 or 3 or
us to make it home for winter break on the same pony, and split the cost of
feed.

~~~
mkolodny
He didn't say they invented ponysharing, so that one is yours.

------
bobsky
Strange they didn't make this announcement on their official blog, going to
their site one would think nothing happened.

Saddest part, no one cares. An hour plus since the news and hardly anybody is
talking about it on Twitter including any reaction to their tweet. For how
much they fought in this transportation movement, they're going out with a
whimper.

~~~
dexterdog
Honestly would anybody really care that much if Uber shut down? The users and
drivers would just move to Lyft or some other service. This isn't Facebook
that has a bunch of your life's history.

~~~
atom-morgan
Uber is approaching household name at this point. If Uber shut down today I
would definitely hear about it outside of HN.

~~~
marme
Uber is only a household name for younger people in cities. I just recently
had to explain to my mother what uber was because she had never heard of it.
For people over 50 living in suburbs they never hear about all this companies
that many people on here think are huge companies that have worldwide
recognition.

You cant say something is a household name until more than 50% of middle aged
people can tell you what a company does just by mentioning their name

~~~
nemothekid
Maybe your folks don't watch as much broadcast television as you'd imagine. My
parents (over 50) know what Uber is given

\- The amount of name drops the service gets on late night TV (Conan, SNL)

\- The news it generates (medallions, the france protests)

\- The viral facebook posts that go around when someone spends $300+ on an
uber ride to go home.

Despite the fact they live in a suburb.

In any case, if we used your stringent definition of "household name", I doubt
companies like Samsung, Sony or Twitter would fit the bill despite having
massive consumer reach (and marketing spends).

------
kazinator
Not the exactly the words you want to hear on the freeway from your
motorcyclist.

~~~
rconti
Thanks for all the fish. Seriously, I took the fish out of the sidecar and
stuck them in my topcase when you weren't looking.

------
minimaxir
Not the first ride-sharing company killed by the Uber/Lyft wars, but was one
of the few with $35M raised: [https://www.crunchbase.com/organization/side-
cr](https://www.crunchbase.com/organization/side-cr)

------
Touche
Thanks for the 2 day notice.

------
elwell
Why did they lose to Uber and Lyft?

~~~
pbreit
Probably a lot of reasons but I think they clung to their scheme of letting
drivers set their prices which I believe they both thought might be preferred
as well as "more legal". But it was generally a worse experience.

~~~
johnrob
Spot on. Uber and Lyft made legality gambles that paid off (they weren't shut
down), and were then able to reap the reward (apps were easy to use).

I hope hindsight doesn't forget that it was indeed a gamble. Homejoy made a
similar bet in the housecleaning industry, but couldn't find a way to pay the
illegal workers that make up a good portion of the industry (there were other
issues Homejoy mentioned, but this one stood out to me - I could be wrong
though).

~~~
toomuchtodo
> Uber and Lyft made legality gambles that paid off (they weren't shut down)

Has the IRS ruled yet on whether Uber and Lyft are going to owe hundreds of
millions in back taxes and penalties due to misclassifying drivers as
independent contractors? No? Still plenty of time to be shut down.

~~~
pbreit
That'll never happen. For starters, 1099 classification is very defensible.
2nd, if some drivers should be W2s, any type of deal would likely only be in
the future. 3rd, in the very, very worse case, there's no way it would be 100s
of millions.

~~~
tzier
1099 classification is not very defensible - see FedEx $228M settlement in
just CA. Obama said that he thinks a third class of workers is just a watered
down version of W-2 protections. Since we're likely going to see a Democratic
president, they're going to be more W-2 friendly than 1099 friendly (though
hopefully also technology friendly).

Point being...under existing regulations, Uber/Lyft drivers are probably W-2s.
But Uber/Lyft are lobbying hard for an alternative, and will probably succeed
in changing minds about it faster than the government can move to crack down.

~~~
pbreit
I don't think FedEx very similar. For example, FedEx employees required to
show up for work, wear uniforms, etc. I think "casual" drivers are definitely
not W2s. And more serious drivers still probably are not. They have far too
much lee-way in what to do including not show up at all.

------
sparky_
From reading the post, I'm still not clear if they're simply pivoting over the
next year, or actually shutting down.

------
Kinnard
I wonder why they didn't op for merger or acquisition . . . and what they're
planning next. I remember meeting them early on in 2013, they seemed waaay
ahead of Uber and Lyft.

~~~
tzier
Founder had previous exit, could be why they didn't capitalize as much (though
that's pure speculation). They're probably just restructuring and using
existing technology for another company.

~~~
syedkarim
Why would a founder with a previous exit not want to capitalize as much,
especially when the two major players are so heavily capitalized?

------
flysfo
I worked at this company, in the offices, for about 2 years. It was quite an
adventure. A lot of up and downs.

This is no surprise. People in this company were great but a lot of the
decisions seemed reckless and unnecessary. So much talent squandered. A lot of
potential wasted.

That being said, the people were a great group. That's life.

