????而Uber不僅只是一家高成長(zhǎng)公司，也不是靠一時(shí)走運(yùn)才在舊金山博客搜索引擎technorati中名列前茅。很多公司還在將如今移動(dòng)設(shè)備普遍帶有的定位功能用于登記、虛擬獎(jiǎng)?wù)隆?yōu)惠券等相對(duì)初級(jí)的用途。Uber不只著眼于商業(yè)。它希望推動(dòng)出租車(chē)這個(gè)美國(guó)第七大的交通運(yùn)輸系統(tǒng)進(jìn)行一場(chǎng)革命。這個(gè)目標(biāo)已經(jīng)為它贏得了大量信徒，包括喜劇演員戴夫?坎貝爾和演員愛(ài)德華?諾頓。風(fēng)投家馬克?安德森并不是Uber的投資者，但他卻稱(chēng)其為“非常棒的體驗(yàn)”。Airbnb的首席執(zhí)行官布萊恩?切斯基則說(shuō)：“Uber使得沒(méi)有車(chē)的生活變得非常簡(jiǎn)單。”

????不過(guò)，Uber仍面臨很多挑戰(zhàn)。比如，通過(guò)Uber搭車(chē)，價(jià)格可能很昂貴，平均最多會(huì)達(dá)到普通出租車(chē)費(fèi)的兩倍。黃色出租車(chē)收費(fèi)13美元的路程，通過(guò)Uber搭車(chē)可能要26美元左右，具體視當(dāng)時(shí)情況而定。節(jié)假日出租車(chē)供不應(yīng)求時(shí)，價(jià)格甚至?xí)摺Ｊ聦?shí)上，它的定價(jià)模式在元旦前夜已引起了爭(zhēng)議，一位用戶(hù)搭乘半英里路程，耗時(shí)僅兩分鐘，結(jié)果卻被收取了75美元。總共有超過(guò)95位用戶(hù)投訴。Uber不得不一一處理，退還車(chē)費(fèi)。“我們汲取了教訓(xùn)，從中也學(xué)到很多東西，”Uber總經(jīng)理兼業(yè)務(wù)運(yùn)營(yíng)副總裁萊恩?格雷弗斯稱(chēng)。Uber表示，未來(lái)價(jià)格通知將更加清楚明了。

????Uber的最大挑戰(zhàn)可能還是來(lái)自市政當(dāng)局。2010年底，就在Uber董事會(huì)任命卡蘭尼克為首席執(zhí)行官的同一天，舊金山市政交通局（San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency）要求Uber停止經(jīng)營(yíng)。他們指控Uber無(wú)證運(yùn)營(yíng)和銷(xiāo)售出租車(chē)服務(wù)，并威脅要對(duì)公司處以罰款，包括每筆違法交易罰款5,000美元。第二天，Uber就把“出租車(chē)”從公司名稱(chēng)中去除了。迄今為止，當(dāng)?shù)乇O(jiān)管部門(mén)再無(wú)異議。

????華盛頓與Uber的爭(zhēng)端可能更難解決。林頓稱(chēng)：“Uber根本沒(méi)把華盛頓放在眼里，他們甚至都沒(méi)花功夫核對(duì)或?qū)彶轳{車(chē)者，確認(rèn)他們擁有合法的手續(xù)。”他還提到了一項(xiàng)城市法律，該法律規(guī)定，按時(shí)間和距離收費(fèi)的車(chē)輛都應(yīng)獲得出租運(yùn)營(yíng)牌照。這自然與Uber的定價(jià)模式有沖突。卡蘭尼克聲稱(chēng)，Uber在進(jìn)入華盛頓市場(chǎng)前，曾與華盛頓出租車(chē)委員會(huì)核實(shí)過(guò)相關(guān)事宜，獲得了許可。“我們進(jìn)入一個(gè)城市時(shí)，從不忽視應(yīng)當(dāng)承擔(dān)的責(zé)任。”華盛頓地方議會(huì)所屬環(huán)境、市政工程和交通委員會(huì)（Environment, Public Works, and Transportation Committee）主席、民主黨議員瑪麗?徹對(duì)林頓的行為深感意外，她承認(rèn)“這樣做太草率了，不是我習(xí)慣的方式。”Uber正在咨詢(xún)當(dāng)?shù)芈蓭熕箍继?伯頓，后者稱(chēng)Uber并沒(méi)有做任何違法的事情。卡蘭尼克和林頓計(jì)劃于2月中旬面談，展開(kāi)正面交鋒。

????Uber, meanwhile, is more than a fast-growing business or the flavor of the moment with the San Francisco technorati. Many companies still use the now ubiquitous geolocation feature in mobile devices for relatively rudimentary aims -- checking in, virtual badges, coupons. Uber's ambition is not just commercial. It wants to revolutionize the country's seventh largest transportation system. And that has earned it plenty of evangelists. Comedian Dave Chappelle and actor Edward Norton are fans. Venture capitalist Marc Andreessen, who is not an investor, calls it a "killer experience." Airbnb CEO Brian Chesky adds, "Uber makes it very easy to not own a car."

????Still, Uber faces plenty of challenges. For one, the price of an Uber ride can be steep. Average fares cost up to two times as much as regular cab fares. A ride that may tally $13 in a typical yellow cab could clock in around $26 via Uber depending on conditions. On holidays, when demand for cabs far outstrips demand, fares may climb even higher. In fact, its pricing model proved controversial on New Year's Eve when one user was charged $75 for a two-minute, half-mile drive. In all, more than 95 users complained. The company was forced to refund fares on a case-by-case basis. "We took our lumps, and we learned a lot from them," says Ryan Graves, Uber's general manager and vice president of business operations. In the future, the company says price notifications to be clearer.

????Ultimately, Uber's biggest challenge may be with municipalities. In late 2010, the same day Uber's board made Kalanick CEO, the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency demanded the company cease and desist operations. Because Uber was allegedly running and marketing itself as a cab service but without a permit, the company was threatened with fines, including $5,000 for every transaction it made. The next day, the startup dropped the word "cab" from its name. So far, that has appeased local regulators.

????D.C.'s beef with Uber may be harder to resolve. "Uber was so disrespectful to the District of Columbia, that they didn't even bother to check and vet their drivers to make sure they were all legal," Linton says. He also cites a city law that requires cars that charge by time and distance be licensed as taxis. This supposedly conflicts with Uber's pricing model. Kalanick claims Uber checked with the commission before deploying in D.C. and got a green light. "When we enter into a city, we don't take that responsibility lightly," he says. Democratic Councilmember Mary Cheh, who chairs the D.C. Council's Environment, Public Works, and Transportation Committee, was surprised by Linton's actions. "It was too quick, too precipitous, and not the way I like to do business," she admits. Uber is consulting with local attorney A. Scott Bolden, who says they've done nothing illegal. Now, Kalanick and Linton have a meeting scheduled to air their grievances face-to-face in mid-February.