Economy
Uber to pull out of Hungary
Uber wraps it up in Hungary
According to the news portal, several Uber drivers received the following notification:We regretfully inform you that at noon on 24 July 2016 Uber is suspending its services in Budapest.
The use of the word ‘suspending’ may suggest that the exit is not for good.Zoltán Fekete, operations manager at Uber in Hungary, will hold a press conference today morning titled ‘The future of Uber after the law entering into effect on 24 July’.
"Uber sticks to its view that banning and blocking new technologies - only because they cannot be forced into the framework of outdated regulations - is not the right way to go," he said earlier when Parliament passed the new legislation last month.
UPDATE: 444.hu reported that Fekete confirmed Uber’s exit at a press conference. He said Uber was willing to be part of a system that allows it to pay taxes in Hungary, but it realised the government is not willing to agree to that.
Hungary Uber alles
The bill was submitted by Development Minister Miklós Seszták and it will be the responsibility of the transport authority to "make temporarily inaccessible" applications ensuring such services and websites promoting them.Under a new government decree passenger transport companies must operate a dispatch service. By definition Uber does not need one, though, as it offers its services via a mobile application and only traditional taxi companies use dispatch services for this.
The ban can be ordered if the party organising or brokering the taxi service fails to comply with dispatch regulations stipulated in the relevant government decree and due to the lack of the necessary permit authorities imposed a fine on the company yet the company continues to offer the service in question. The ban may be ordered for a 365-day period.
The effective blocking will be organised and monitored by the National Media and Telecommunications Authority, and every electronic telecommunication service provider must comply with the resolution to block the website and the application.
The watchdog may impose a fine of HUF 50 000 to HUF 200 000 on the service provider that does not comply. The fine may be repeatedly imposed during non-compliance.
444.hu reported that Fekete confirmed Uber’s exit at a press conference. He said Uber was willing to be part of a system that allows it to pay taxes in Hungary, but it realised the government is not willing to agree to that.
Banning should only be a measure of last resort, the EU says
EU regulators clearly stated earlier that banning Uber is not the right choice and that there are much better solutions. In its guidance the European Commission said:Service providers should only be obliged to obtain business authorisations or licenses where strictly necessary to meet relevant public interest objectives. Absolute bans of an activity should only be a measure of last resort.
It added in its guidance that:Platforms should not be subject to authorisations or licenses where they only act as intermediaries between consumers and those offering the actual service (e.g. transport or accommodation service).
The EC’s guidance hits at what solution it would welcome but this raises questions of interpretability."Member States should also differentiate between individual citizens providing services on an occasional basis and providers acting in a professional capacity, for example by establishing thresholds based on the level of activity."
Well, Hungary does not agree.
