European Court of Justice Rules Uber is a Transportation Service and May be Regulated as Such (December 20, 2017) [1]
On December 20, 2017, the Court of Justice of the European Union ruled [3] in Asociación Profesional Élite Taxi v. Uber Systems Spain SL that the ride-hailing electronic platform Uber must be classified as “a service in the field of transport” within the meaning of EU law. The case was initially instigated be a group of taxi drivers in Spain who argued that Uber’s activities amounted to misleading practices and acts of unfair competition, and the Court noted that in order to make that determination it had to decide whether Uber’s services should be regarded as transport services, information society services, or a combination of both. The Court determined [4] that a service like the one at issue, which connects “by means of a smartphone application and for remuneration, non-professional drivers using their own vehicle with persons who wish to make urban journeys, must be regarded as being inherently linked to a transport service” and is not covered by the directive on services in the internal market or the directive on electronic commerce, under which their practices would not be regarded as unfair. Consequently, the Court determined that “it is for the Member States to regulate the conditions under which such services are to be provided in conformity with the general rules of the Treaty on the Functioning of the EU.”