Defunct startup Sidecar Technologies, which pioneered on-demand ride-hailing, is suing Uber, alleging it engaged in predatory pricing and anticompetitive practices that ultimately put Sidecar out of business.
The lawsuit, filed in US district court in San Francisco on Tuesday, December 11, claims “Uber became hell-bent on stifling competition from competing ride-hailing apps,” and used subsidies and made fake ride requests to competitors in a bid to dominate the market. Sidecar went out of business in December 2015 and sold its assets to General Motors in 2016.
The lawsuit comes after Uber made a confidential filing for an initial public offering last Thursday and is the latest in a long line of legal disputes targeting Uber, which has battled drivers and rival companies.
The complaint was brought by SC Innovations, the successor to Sidecar after it was shuttered. Sunil Paul, the co-founder of Sidecar, said that with Uber, “it was never a fair fight.”
“That’s why Sidecar failed,” Paul said in a blog post. “And it’s also why both drivers and passengers are left with higher prices and fewer choices today. Now it is clear that Uber’s predatory and anti-competitive strategy worked.”
Sidecar alleged in the lawsuit that “Uber’s senior officers and executives directed clandestine campaigns” to place fraudulent ride requests on the Sidecar app. Drivers were inundated with ride requests sent by Uber that were canceled before they arrived at th
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