Uber’s German ban just got overturned
A judge in Germany has reversed a country-wide ban on Uber, the taxi app.
The service had been told it could no longer operate in the country, but after an appeal Frankfurt Regional Court Judge Frowin Kurth decided the original complainants – other taxi companies in the country – had waited too long before they lodged their request for an emergency injunction.
Fabien Nestmann, a spokesman for the company, said:
The decision is an important step towards the recognition of Uber as an innovative… asset to [Germany's] tech business. One thing is clear: we have no intention of displacing traditional taxi services. We believe in freedom of choice and we rely on the German consumer.
This doesn't bring an end to Uber's woes in the country: there's a chance taxi drivers could lodge an appeal, or bring an ordinary lawsuit, rather than the emergency injunction they originally sought.
Last week, the court in Franfurt issued a €1,000 (£800) fine against one of Uber's driver, saying he faced a €250,000 fine or a six month jail sentence if he continued to operate through UberPop.
The company has faced controversy in most of the 150 cities it operates in. In London, black cab drivers have protested because it acts as a metre, which is technically against Transport for London rules. But Uber argues that, as it is an app based on users' phones, it isn't a fixed metre.