BUSINESS
3 Reasons Why Uber Failed in Japan
Despite the whizzy app, Uber couldn’t compete with local taxi services and government regulations
Uber Japan started its ride-hailing service in 2014. It was initially expected to disrupt the Japanese taxi business. However, 8 years after its launch, Uber is available only in 15 cities in Japan.
It failed to spread across the country, let alone destroy the taxi industry. Here are the three reasons for Uber’s failure you may not know.
#1 Legal Entry Barriers
In Japan, illegal private taxis are called 白タク(shiro-taku) — short for “white taxi” — referring to the white license plates of regular cars in comparison with the green plates of legal taxi vehicles.
You cannot become a professional taxi driver overnight in Japan. To comply with the regulations of the Road Traffic Act, you need to obtain a commercial driver’s license (class II) in addition to the standard license (class I). Plus, you need to pass a geography test to operate in highly-populated areas.
Got the license and passed the test? Then, you have to work for a taxi company for at least 2 years before starting your own business as an individual taxi service provider.
