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Uber shuts down Paris service to protest new regulations

Uber shuts down Paris service to protest new regulations

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Ride-hailing app goes dark for four hours to support ongoing chauffeur demonstrations

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Uber is suspending its service in Paris today to support an ongoing driver protest against new regulations aimed at cracking down on ride-hailing apps in France. The company's French employees are joining a demonstration organized by a group of full-time chauffeurs who have been protesting against the government for five days now.

At issue is a set of new regulations introduced after taxi unions staged a nationwide strike last month, calling for an end to Uber and other non-taxi chauffeur services. After meeting with the heads of taxi groups, French Prime Minister Manuel Valls vowed to tighten restrictions on the chauffeur services and ordered Uber and other apps to stop hiring a certain class of salaried drivers that represent about 20 to 30 percent of their workforce. In response, hundreds of drivers staged a "funeral march" in Paris last week to protest the measures, which they say will put 10,000 chauffeurs out of work.

"We stand by... drivers, it's as simple as that."

Thomas Meister, spokesman for Uber France, says this is the first time that Uber has shut down its service in support of a driver protest. The service will be suspended for four hours in Paris today, from 11AM to 3PM local time. Uber had previously sought to publicly distance itself from the protests, though it did send out emails to its drivers last week urging them to participate.

"We stand by [the] drivers, it's as simple as that," Meister said by phone from the demonstration site on the eastern edge of Paris today. "We can't let these people down."

Many of the drivers protesting today work for a class of small businesses, known as LOTI, which provide group transport services. LOTI companies have in recent years struck deals to work with Uber and other apps, but the government regulations would render those deals illegal. According to the drivers' group that first organized the protest, Uber and other ride-hailing apps comprise around 70 percent of their business. The drivers are demanding a moratorium on the regulations, as a government-appointed mediator works to reconcile the divide between taxi unions and private chauffeur services like Uber, known in France as "voitures de tourisme avec chauffeur" (VTC).

Uber has faced increased resistance from taxi groups as it has expanded across France, where it currently has more than 12,000 drivers and 1.4 million users. The government shut down its low-cost UberPop service last year, following widespread taxi protests that turned violent, and arrested two executives on charges of operating an illegal transport operation. The company has rejected taxi unions claims that it enjoys an unfair competitive advantage, arguing that its app adds much-needed flexibility to a notoriously rigid market.

"This is going to last, they won't let it go," Meister said of the drivers protesting today. "They will stand up and fight until the end to continue working. It's as simple as that, they just want to continue working."