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Uber, Lyft approved to operate in B.C.'s Lower Mainland – CTV News

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VANCOUVER —
Uber and Lyft are finally on their way to Metro Vancouver.

The Passenger Transportation Board announced Thursday that it has approved ride hail companies Uber and Lyft to operate in B.C.’s Lower Mainland and Whistler.

At the same time, the PTB declined approval for ReRyde Technologies Inc. and Kater Technologies Inc. for several B.C. regions.

“British Columbians have been asking for new ride hailing services since 2012, but the old government failed to get it done. Our government did the hard work and delivered,” Claire Trevena, B.C.’s transportation minister, said in a statement after the approvals were announced Thursday. 

“Over the last two years, our government has been diligent in developing a framework that puts passenger safety first, and we remained steadfast against pressures to abandon the safety measures we put in place. Road users can now be confident that B.C.’s ride-hailing services will comply with some of the highest safety standards in North America.”

Those eager to start using ride hailing shouldn’t open their apps just yet. Uber said that there are still “administrative approvals” it needs before it can start operating. 

“The PTB’s approval is one of the final steps before Uber is able to start providing reliable, safe, affordable rides in Metro Vancouver,” Michael van Hemmen, Uber’s head of Western Canada said in a news release. “We hope to launch very soon, once we have obtained a business licence from the City of Vancouver and purchased insurance from ICBC.”

Lyft also said it’s working with cities to get business licences.

“Once those are approved, we plan to announce our initial operating area, give our inaugural ride, and launch our service,” Lyft’s general manager for B.C. said in a news release. 

“We can’t wait to see the new ways in which Vancouverites explore their city once they have a Lyft ride at their fingertips.” 

Long wait for ride hailing

After the B.C. government introduced ride hailing last year, companies were able to apply to the PTB in the fall. 

However it still took months for Uber and Lyft to get approval from the PTB. First, Trevena told reporters in November that she was “very confident” ride hailing would be in place by Christmas. 

Then in December, just days before Christmas, CTV News received a statement from Trevena echoing those same words.

But by New Year’s Eve, only one ride-hailing company – which plans to mostly operate in resort towns like Whistler – had received approval from the PTB. 

Restrictions a hurdle for drivers

Even though ride hailing has been approved and Uber and Lyft can soon operate in the Lower Mainland, the process for drivers to sign up with the service is more complicated than in other provinces. As a result, both Uber and Lyft said recruiting could be an issue. 

The process for drivers includes getting a Class 4 commercial licence, which requires taking a knowledge test, road test, vehicle inspection and a medical exam. 

“Because of the Class 4 licensing restriction we are seeing fewer drivers than we would see in a healthy ride sharing market like the others ones we operate in,” said Lyft’s general manager for B.C., Peter Lukomskyj last October. 

“Getting drivers enrolled into the program and finding enough drivers will be a challenge here.”

Vancouver ready for ride hailing

Along with approval from the province, ride hail companies also need a licence from municipalities.

In December, the City of Vancouver said it was ready to welcome ride hailing and that regulations were already in place. 

“City staff are already working closely with ride-hailing companies to ready their business licence applications for quick processing, and aim to issue a municipal business licence within three days of receiving a complete application,” the city said in a news release at the time.

Mayor Kennedy Stewart reiterated that three-day timeline in a tweet Thursday. 

The city also said it was also working with other municipalities so ride-hailing companies can operate throughout the Lower Mainland. 

Licensing and vehicle fees for taxis and limousines are set at the same cost as ride-hailing companies in Vancouver. The annual licence fee is $155 and companies pay an additional $100 annual fee per vehicle. 

Wheelchair accessible and zero-emission vehicles have their vehicle fee waived, however. 

This is a developing story and will be updated

With files from CTV News Vancouver’s Bhinder Sajan and Shannon Paterson 

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Netflix’s subscriber growth slows as gains from password-sharing crackdown subside

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Netflix on Thursday reported that its subscriber growth slowed dramatically during the summer, a sign the huge gains from the video-streaming service’s crackdown on freeloading viewers is tapering off.

The 5.1 million subscribers that Netflix added during the July-September period represented a 42% decline from the total gained during the same time last year. Even so, the company’s revenue and profit rose at a faster pace than analysts had projected, according to FactSet Research.

Netflix ended September with 282.7 million worldwide subscribers — far more than any other streaming service.

The Los Gatos, California, company earned $2.36 billion, or $5.40 per share, a 41% increase from the same time last year. Revenue climbed 15% from a year ago to $9.82 billion. Netflix management predicted the company’s revenue will rise at the same 15% year-over-year pace during the October-December period, slightly than better than analysts have been expecting.

The strong financial performance in the past quarter coupled with the upbeat forecast eclipsed any worries about slowing subscriber growth. Netflix’s stock price surged nearly 4% in extended trading after the numbers came out, building upon a more than 40% increase in the company’s shares so far this year.

The past quarter’s subscriber gains were the lowest posted in any three-month period since the beginning of last year. That drop-off indicates Netflix is shifting to a new phase after reaping the benefits from a ban on the once-rampant practice of sharing account passwords that enabled an estimated 100 million people watch its popular service without paying for it.

The crackdown, triggered by a rare loss of subscribers coming out of the pandemic in 2022, helped Netflix add 57 million subscribers from June 2022 through this June — an average of more than 7 million per quarter, while many of its industry rivals have been struggling as households curbed their discretionary spending.

Netflix’s gains also were propelled by a low-priced version of its service that included commercials for the first time in its history. The company still is only getting a small fraction of its revenue from the 2-year-old advertising push, but Netflix is intensifying its focus on that segment of its business to help boost its profits.

In a letter to shareholder, Netflix reiterated previous cautionary notes about its expansion into advertising, though the low-priced option including commercials has become its fastest growing segment.

“We have much more work to do improving our offering for advertisers, which will be a priority over the next few years,” Netflix management wrote in the letter.

As part of its evolution, Netflix has been increasingly supplementing its lineup of scripted TV series and movies with live programming, such as a Labor Day spectacle featuring renowned glutton Joey Chestnut setting a world record for gorging on hot dogs in a showdown with his longtime nemesis Takeru Kobayashi.

Netflix will be trying to attract more viewer during the current quarter with a Nov. 15 fight pitting former heavyweight champion Mike Tyson against Jake Paul, a YouTube sensation turned boxer, and two National Football League games on Christmas Day.

The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.

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