Taking Rides From Strangers: The Learning Curb Of Uber

By Sarah Parsons

                    

                      An Uber User Recently Discussed Her Views On Inflated Rating Systems

                                                                    What is Uber?

Uber is a San Francisco based transportation company that allows crowd-sourcing taxi service to be enabled for mobile app use in most major cities around the USA and 200 cities worldwide. Uber has become increasingly popular with the mobile app dependent generation that is looking for ways to cut the cost of certain services by using cheaper alternatives. Companies such as Lyft and Uber were created to capitalize on this growing market. In essence, users of the app can schedule a pick up from a certified Uber driver. According to Uber, many of the drivers are certified drivers and if Uber users consistently gives an Uber driver a rating below a 5 star rating, that driver is then asked to take remedial driving courses to better their skills and improve the app user's experience.

Uber in the News

Uber has recently been in the news regarding the safety of the passengers who use the app. Many have claimed have had negative experiences with the service, such as the drivers not abiding by the traffic laws, feelings of uneasiness, derogatory comments being made by the driver about the passenger, promptness and rape allegations that are now being hashed out in court. Uber hasn't quite gotten a break in the legal department with taxi drivers, either. Many taxi companies in cities where Uber is popular, are currently suing Uber for allegedly operating illegally in their city (this lawsuit was brought on by the Pennslyvania Public Transport Commission). Legal troubles persist around Uber as the National Federation of the Blind filled a pretty serious lawsuit against Uber's drivers for treating their blind passengers unethically and violating the Americans With Disabilities Act of 1990 by refusing blind patrons ride and one case detailing a Uber driver putting a seeing-eye dog in the trunk. Uber also was involed in the death of a six-year-old girl when an Uber driver, whom was not carrying a passenger, struck and killed the girl. Uber claimed to not be at fault for the death, but the girl's family is currently filling a wrongful death lawsuit against the company. Outside looking in, Uber doesn't seem to catch a break and is plagued with a lot of misfortunes.

 Fault In Their Stars: Inflated Rating System

 

The rating system on Uber ultimately makes or breaks the way in which driver-passenger relations are played out. I believe it is the job of the consumer to truthfully post how their experience with their driver was. To give a Uber driver a 5 star rating when the ride did not deserve a "perfect" score, does not help the business develop and filter out potential drivers. The responsibilities of whether these incidents are reported or not is on the driver and passenger. It also seems that Uber is puting too much stress on the drivers and passengers to give and recive perfect 5 star ratings. This does no good for the company because of the added presures put on the driver. I would suggest that Uber operates more on a spectrum of their ratings and let drivers recieve a 4 or 3 star rating without penalty and if the 1 or 2 star ratings are persistent with a certain driver, then action must be taken to correct this. But nothing can be adequately done until users are being truthful with their ratings and don't lazily default to 1 or 5 star ratings.

Pratical Pizza; Meals On Wheels With Pizza Hut App

By Sarah Parsons 

Pizza Hut is enabling users of their app to order on the go.

 You had me at pizza

Picture this; you are driving home from work and you get a hankering for some good ole Pizza Hut pizza, breadsticks, etc. But the only problem is, you don't know how to go about placing an order while you are going from work. Or, you have hungry children impatiently waiting at home who are hoping you don't come home again empty handed and sloppily put together frozen fish sticks and Easy-Mac again. Because, let's face it; sometimes you just don't feel like cooking or waiting in a drive-thru with other people possibly in the same predicament that you are in. Pizza Hut is here to help. The good people at Pizza Hut have come up with a solution to this problem by offering users of the app to order as they go.

How can this make things easier for me?

Texas-based company Pizza Hut Inc., San Francisco based company Visa Inc., and Ireland based consultant management firm Accenture PLC know how that feels. Basically, the app offers services like the ability for customers to order while driving, specifically beacon technology, which alerts employees when customers pull in to pick up their order. This means, the customer doesn't have to leave their vehicle when they pull up to a Pizza Hut location. Their order will be brought to them from the comfort of their car. The app also uses Visa Checkout, which is easier for the user to have their card information uploaded and ready to use when they arrive at a Pizza Hut location. A cool new facet for this Pizza Hut app is the ability for the car commerce program. This program enables users to have the inter-connectivity in their car, especially if they have a GPS navigation dashboard, that gives them the ability to download the app and use it in their car. 

How do you think users will respond to it?

I believe this is a smart move for Pizza Hut. The brand has had a torrid history with brand identity, specifically eliminating their buffet-style interior for a more polished and modern feel. Having the ability for delivery on-the-go through beacon technology with build customer loyalty with the brand. They are recognizing the inconveniences their customers face while ordering their food and are helping users navigate their order with ease. The pizza industry seems very cut-throat, especially with Domino's condensing their logo from "pizza" to the singular "Domino's". I'm interested to see how this inter connectivity with the car commerce program will fair with the app's new feature.  Let the pizza battles continue.

Putting Love On The Line: Dating On The Web

By Sarah Parsons

I stumbled across a man's experience in online dating and it sparked my interest...

 Isn't Online Dating for losers who can't get dates?

 Online dating can mean many things to many people. Although once stigmatized by the masses, sites and mobile apps such as OkCupid, Tinder and for those willing to shed some money towards finding true love at eharmony are becoming popular with a the millennial generation. For those of you who aren't up to sped, let me catch you up. These are sites and mobile apps that let you customize your profile, from everything to basic stats (age, sex, location, etc), to what your intentions are for the site (hook-ups, relationships, "just seeing what's out there", etc) and to menial things like how you would respond to certain situations and lifestyles through questionnaires. It's like speed-dating for the virtual world and it is most definitely something to be on the look out for.

So why are kids into this? Why not go to a bar or meet people in public?

Well, in our increasingly digital age that we live in, it is not wonder these dating sites and apps are a hit. Of course, there is a pro and a con to every side. First, let's start with the pros; online dating helps aid the initial social interaction between individuals who fear rejection. Take for instance a situation in which you are in a bar, cruising for either Mr. Right or Mr. Right Now. Wherever your intentions rely, finding a partner is tricky business when you are surrounded by a public in which you deem pretty, smarter, more interesting, etc. Landing a mate is hard to do easily, especially with competition. Online dating helps to eliminate that anxiety. From the comfort of your home or on your mobile, you can lay it all out there in a profile that neatly defines who you want to portray to those perusing the dating app or site you have chosen. This type of digital dating does increase the chances in filtering out potential mates. Of course, there is a con to every pro. The cons to online dating is the authenticity of those who post their information. Many times, the hype created by a profile is often cause for problems when a real life interaction between hopeful mates ends with one, the other or both parties being disappointed. And, of course, there is a matter of safety. Are you meeting up with someone whom is harmless or dangerous? This is a gamble many are willing to take in the online dating world

What does this mean for the world of dating?

Online dating is a chance for people to become more confident in their prospects by designing a representation of themselves for the online community to decipher their worth. Speaking from personal experience, I met my current boyfriend from OkCupid. Through my experiences, I met a plethora of individuals who ranged in what they were looking for. What I thought was particularly interesting, is that many individuals claim to not want their friends, family members and the general public to know that they were using a dating app online. The stigma still persists but with the popularity of the aforementioned dating apps, this may be a thing of the past. The ideal that only "desperate" people use dating apps is phasing out as more and more individuals become curious as to what is out there. Also, the idea of meeting at bars, clubs, through community activities is becoming slightly less ideal as people seem to be wanting to know more information instantly about everyone else, which has been enabled by the wonders of the internet. I am interested in seeing whether this will popularity in digitized dating will stick and in what form it will mutate into. 

#newmedia #onlinedating #futureofdating #okcupid #eharmony #tinder

Another Cloud In The Sky: Box Launches IPO

Box, a new cloud sharing service, is set to take over the market with users and cloud sharing.

 Yeah, Ok. So what does IT mean?

In less fancy talk, this means that this new service aims to make cloud enabled sharing on all devices such as tablets, phones and desktops A. LOT. EASIER. Users can share documents, photos, videos from anywhere, making this concept in the same vein as Google, Microsoft and Apple. Basically, it is a floating hard-drive for all of your storing needs. This service has the possibility to rethink cloud sharing, because if you have any doubts about cloud sharing, you may loosen your grip on that SD card after getting schooled on this service.

You're talking a big talk. So why should I care?

This company has a LOT of potential. So much potential that the company is already worth $1.7 billion smackaroos. That's a lot of green for investors to put into a company that is going against media giants like Google, Amazon and Mircosoft. Their splash is making enough waves to get the conversation started about what this company has the potential to do. And the biggest selling point? You, as the user, can store up to 10GB of storage for FREE. And if you want to go cloud-storing-crazy, you can get 100GB for $10-per-month. And although this service is for the general public, a lot of big businesses are using it as well. Box aims to use it's services towards retail and medical businesses to help with easy consumer-employee transactions. Also, the fact 99% of its consumers are Fortune 500 companies ain't too shabby either. Sounds awesome if you ask me, which you probably didn't, but I answered you anyway.

Started from the bottom now we here; Box founders at their HQ 8 years ago.

So what's the catch?

Although Box is a company with a great start-up, and the first day of trading surpassed expectations, the company still has a couple of kinks to work out and wrinkles to iron. The company IS up against giant media competitors like Google and Apple and it also has some financial woes to tackle. The company currently doesn't make a profit. As of today, the company lost an estimated $483 million since its founding mostly due to marketing and and sales advertising (so, it's safe to say they weren't sparing cost cuts by passing out any flimsy Kinko's copies of flyers around supermarkets, if you know what I mean). Also, it seems Box and co. was too scared to jump into the IPO deep end of the pool and waited a year for conditions to be right in that big open market before making a splash. This, understandably, made investors nervously fiddle with their pearl necklaces.

Uh-huh. So, what do YOU think?

So glad you FINALLY asked! I think this is a neat little business in cloud sharing. I get REALLY frustrated with Apple sharing (mainly because I'm incompetent when admitting defeat toward anything tech related, so I just start smashing and clicking buttons while praying that it will sort itself out). With all the scandalous mishaps with hackers getting into the Apple Cloud and sharing personal and private information of well-known celebrities, Box may have found an optimal time to convert users. Box could use this as an advantage to preach their safety features and offer a way out for those who fear they may be hacked next, especially with the paranoia surrounding a lot of personal information stored where hackers are capable of accessing it. I think it has a shot. I'm interested in seeing how it pans out. Cheers to Box, best of luck and maybe keep the advertising costs to a minimum? Ain't no shame in using social media and MAYBE passing out a flyer here or there. I say this as a friend (aka possible consumer) and with love.

#NewMedia #BoxCompany #CloudSharing #CloudCompetitors