Sharing economy Archives

US ride-hailing app Uber told Europe's top court on Monday (24 April) that it was a digital service, not a transport service, and that a French law clearly targeted online taxi services, in its latest European legal battle with the taxi industry.

According to Dita Charanzová, smart cities are about bettering the lives of Europe's citizens. They'll not only improve urban life but the environment too, she told Euractiv.com

The advent of the gig economy has brought fundamental changes to the way in which we access goods and services and turned traditional business models on their head.  Denis Pennel considers its impact on employment and the likely implications for the future of work.

A majority of EU governments are expected tomorrow (29 November) to back – at least partly – the ride-hailing firm’s claim of being a digital platform, opening the way for a lighter regulatory oversight of the American-based company than if it was considered like a normal transport firm.

Enterprises like Uber and Airbnb “basically suck value out of the local economy” by trying to work around social laws and other regulations, says Michel Bauwens. But simply banning them would be short-sighted, he told EURACTIV.com.

The insurance industry is adjusting its offers on health, cars, the sharing economy and other services because of the growing amount of personal data becoming available.

A Berlin court is due to make a landmark ruling with ramifications for home rental firms such as Airbnb on Wednesday (8 June) when it decides if homeowners can engage in short-term lets.

The success of sharing economy firms offers new opportunities to insurers who see Uber drivers and Airbnb flat owners as a potential source of revenue. But setting up a safe environment for digital platforms, contractors, and users remains a challenge.

Saudi Arabia's sovereign wealth fund has announced investment totalling €3.5 billion in Uber, as the kingdom seeks to diversify away from petrodollars. EURACTIV’s partner La Tribune reports.

Services such as ride-hailing app Uber and home-rental site Airbnb should only be banned as a last resort, the European Commission said on Thursday (2 June), as it seeks to foster development of the "sharing economy".

Europe tends to be perceived as a laggard when it comes to innovative technologies. This characterisation must be taken with a grain of salt. After all, some European countries are global leaders in innovation, writes Diego Zuluaga.

The European Commission will ask member states to review and amend legislation, when necessary, to end the fragmentation faced by Uber, Airbnb and other collaborative platforms in Europe, EURACTIV.com has learned.

The European Commission's highly anticipated views on the sharing economy are expected to pave the way towards a solution to outstanding complaints put forward against the likes of Uber and Airbnb in a number of EU countries.

With the rise of the virtual economy, the new ways of working need to be recognised and regulated so that workers are afforded appropriate rights and social protection, writes Denis Pennel.

The European Union is the biggest economy and largest trading bloc in the world, yet our position in the global economy has been decreasing in relative terms. A fully integrated single market can help put us back on top, writes Joseph Daul.

The European Commission is pushing local authorities to digitise cities and make them more efficient—one radical plan bubbling up could minimise the number of cars on city streets.

Uber, Airbnb and BlaBlaCar could score an important victory soon as the Spanish regulator is set to recommend lifting all the “unjustified barriers” limiting the sharing economy in the country, which is seen as the most restrictive member state for this new business model.

The European Commission is expected to publish its guidelines on how to apply existing EU legislation on the sharing economy in mid-2016, while ministers mull whether new legislation may be needed to deal with Uber, Airbnb and other similar companies.

The EU should have just two sets of rules for telecoms: one for infrastructure, and one for services, argue Alexandre de Streel and Bruno Liebhaberg. When similar services are on offer, the same rules should apply regardless of the technology, they contend.

For decades, workers in Germany, Europe and the United States have been the wealthiest in the world. That is about to change for the worse as America heads towards a "freelance society", writes Steven Hill.

The European Commission will issue guidelines to member states in early March on how to regulate emerging companies like Uber and Airbnb, which have shaken up the taxi and hotel sector.

Members of the European Parliament backed Uber-type companies in the heated debate about the sharing economy, calling on regulators to encourage their development in Europe.

The National Authority for Markets and Competition in Madrid is set to publish a groundbreaking report calling for eliminating unjustified barriers against services such as Uber and Airbnb, EURACTIV has learned.