Uber to Direct People to South Korean Cab Company

Jan 20, 2015 10:00 AM EST | Matt Mercuro

Uber will start directing people to a cab company in South Korea's third biggest city as the car-sharing service fixes it business model in order to comply with local regulations.

The company will start services in Incheon, located northwest of Seoul, in partnership with Seven Call Taxi, a company that runs nearly 3,000 cabs a month, Uber confirmed to Bloomberg.

The four-year-old company allows users to summon taxi-like services by using their smartphones.

The decision follows a December indictment of Uber's Chief Executive Officer Travis Kalanick by South Korean prosecutors for violating South Korean transportation laws, which say that only licensed cabs can be used for taxi services.

The metropolitan government in Seoul, South Korea's capital, confirmed last year that it could ban the ride-sharing app's services and all similar applications on grounds that they aren't safe and because they compete with licensed taxi services.

Uber has been suspended in countries like Germany and India, and a number of U.S. states as well, over legal issues. The app was banned in Spain back in December, and earlier this month, the European Union's top court denied non-traditional cabs the use of bus lanes in London.

Uber has responded by adjusting its services a bit, and in some cases the company has completely changing its business model. Software is now available allowing customers to find taxis in several countries, though it's a less profitable business.

Kalanick said yesterday that the company is looking to create 50,000 new jobs in Europe this year in cities that are willing to make deals with the firm.

The San Francisco-based company is currently the most highly valued venture-backed start-up in the world, worth nearly $41 billion. The app is so popular because it connects private drivers to passengers looking for a ride that is nearby to get them where they need to go quickly, instead of having to search for a cab. 

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