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© Copyright 2018 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.Uber poised to make investment in scooter-rental business
By The Associated Press©2024 GPlusMedia Inc.
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thelonius
Cool. Another business we will never see in Japan
baktaka
yeah good riddance to that, these things are banned in the streets here and for good reason.
Silvafan
It won't succeed simply because Japan doesn't want a successful company entering the Japanese market. They will find all kinds of reasons to sabotage their attempts. If Rakuten does it then you won't see anyone complain. By the way, I do know people who visit Japan and use Uber all the time.
baktaka
Plenty of successful foreign companies here... apple and google anyone ? Japan is just not friendly to companies who don’t play by the rules, Uber and Air BNB being prime examples. Regulation is very much required and appreciated.
NoIdeaAboutAnything
Scooter rental ??? You mean we can rent scooters or as they're commonly known in Japan Kickboards ?
Silvafan
@baktaka
Not the same comparison. It isn't about playing by the rules, or you mean keeping the status quo. Google and Apple don't need to have offices in Japan to be successful. In fact there are only a few Apples stores in the whole country and only one somewhat Google office. These companies offer something Japanese people want, but can't be provided at the same quality from domestic companies. Japanese laptop makers are lower end. I can't even think a decent competitor for Google in Japan. AirBNB and Uber are competing with companies run by old-heads that have stayed in business through payoffs and colluding with one another. Uber and AirBnb threaten an industry that doesn't know how to innovate. They simply want to practice protectionist strategies. That is true for a lot of industries here. It isn't anything new. Same thing with Walmart and department stores. How is Seiyu doing?