UPDATED: At the request of those from Star Taxi, I will tell you that this decision does not apply to those from UBER, and I will leave below the decision taken by the Court of Justice of the European Union.
UBER, Star Taxi, and other companies that provide ridesharing services, alternative transport, or put clients in touch with taxis are at the center of a very important decision taken by the Court of Justice of the European Union, and everything started from Bucharest. Star Taxi was fined 4500 LEI in 2017 for not submitting an application for the issuance of a dispatch license, the fine being contested in court in Romania, where it lost, and so the appeal went to the Court of Justice of the European Union.
Star Taxi argued before the Court of Justice of the European Union that it does not provide taxi services, nor ridesharing, and that it does not need a dispatcher, being only an online service that puts taxi drivers and customers in contact, but nothing more a lot. The Court of Justice of the European Union agreed with what was stated by Star Taxi, according to which the service offered is not one that is an integrated part of taximetry, and from this UBER can profit a lot.
UBER: UNPRECEDENTED decision in Europe Thanks to Star Taxi
UBER, Star Taxi, and other similar companies can ask to be seen as internet service providers, and not as taxi companies, and this is because they put customers in contact with drivers, but they do not own the cars with which the transport is made . Of course, in order to have a classification of this kind, it is necessary that UBER, Star Taxi, and other similar companies offer only certain types of services for customers, so it is possible that the functionality of their applications will be modified.
"A small fine for a travel app from Bucharest will have big consequences for similar services all over Europe. On Thursday, the EU's top court ruled that ride-hailing apps that put passengers in direct contact with taxi drivers — and don't provide a crucial part of the ride service — are online platforms. The EU Court agreed with Star Taxi's argument, stating that its service is not an 'integral' part of the taxi transport service."
UBER and Star Taxi complained a lot about the legislation in Romania, which for a period of time blocked their activity in our country, but the government of that time found a suitable legal formula for them to resume their activity. Now the decision given by the European court opens the way for UBER and Star Taxi to ask to be seen as simple internet service providers, which will greatly change the market of ridesharing services in Europe.
UBER, Star Taxi, Bolt, are the main competitors of taxi companies in Romania, and it will be interesting to see how the authorities will decide that their activity in our country should be regulated based on this decision.
