According to a pay-walled article in The Information:
Thanks to a secret software-based effort within Uber called "Hell," Uber could track how many Lyft drivers were available for new rides and where they were[.] [...] "Hell" showed Uber employees which of the tracked drivers were driving for both Lyft and Uber, helping Uber figure out how to lure those drivers away from its rival.
additional coverage:
Related Stories
Lyft and Waymo have signed a deal to bring autonomous cars into mainstream use:
As the race to bring self-driving vehicles to the public intensifies, two of Silicon Valley's most prominent players are teaming up. Waymo, the self-driving car unit that operates under Google's parent company, has signed a deal with the ride-hailing start-up Lyft, according to two people familiar with the agreement who spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly. The deal calls for the companies to work together to bring autonomous vehicle technology into the mainstream through pilot projects and product development efforts, these people said.
[...] The deal between Waymo and Lyft has competitive implications for Uber, the world's biggest ride-hailing company, which has recently had to confront a spate of workplace and legal problems. Lyft is a distant No. 2 to Uber among ride-hailing services in the United States, and the two companies are bitter rivals. Waymo is also competing fiercely with Uber in the creation of technology for autonomous cars and is embroiled in a lawsuit over what it says is Uber's use of stolen Waymo trade secrets to develop such technology.
Details about the deal between Waymo and Lyft were scant. The companies declined to comment on what types of products would be brought to market as a result of it or when the public might see the fruits of the collaboration.
Also at The Verge.
Previously: Uber and Lyft: Settlements, Racism, and Auto Partnerships
Google Waymo Vehicles to Hit the Road This Month
GM and Lyft to Test Thousands of Self-Driving Electric Cars in 2018
Google Spin-Off Waymo Accuses Uber of Stealing Self-Driving Tech
Lyft Pays $27M to Settle Driver Classification Suit
Uber Tracked Lyft Drivers
Uber Engineer Must Reveal Reason for Pleading the Fifth to Judge
Uber Could Face Injunction Stopping It From Testing Driverless Cars
Uber is Under Federal Investigation for Spying On Lyft Drivers
Uber's been in the headlines for the worst of reasons this year, and the bad news keeps on coming. Now, it looks like Uber is involved in yet another federal investigation. Authorities from the FBI's New York office are looking into whether Uber's Hell software illegally interfered with the operations of its competitor, Lyft.
We've previously covered the computer program, which Uber secretly ran for two years. It used a vulnerability in Lyft's systems to spy on the company's drivers from 2014 to early 2016. They used the data to figure out which of their own drivers "double apped," meaning drove for both Lyft and Uber, and then tried to entice those drivers to work only for Uber. The key for investigators is whether the Hell software program actually consisted of unauthorized access to a computer. An Uber spokesman told The Wall Street Journal that the company is cooperating with the investigation.
FBI Investigating Uber for "Hell" Driver Spying Software
Uber Technologies Inc. is under investigation by federal authorities in New York for its alleged use of a spyware program designed to undermine competition for its digital ride-hailing service, according to people familiar with the matter.
FBI probes Uber's use of software to target rival Lyft
Previously: Uber Tracked Lyft Drivers
(Score: 2) by takyon on Friday April 14 2017, @08:18AM (2 children)
So if you had been "double apping", you would have received even more benefits from doing so aside from being able to pick up Lyft passengers. Any drivers using Uber exclusively would be complete suckers.
What the fuck, Uber? Lol.
All of the bad press that Uber has gotten lately could amount to nothing in comparison to losing in court with Google/Waymo. That could lead to a payout reminiscent of the Samsung/Apple case. Although dragging it out indefinitely is also an option.
Speaking of hell software, next version of my userscript coming very soon...
[SIG] 10/28/2017: Soylent Upgrade v14 [soylentnews.org]
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday April 14 2017, @02:50PM (1 child)
I'm not sure how you see offering targeted incentives as making a "sucker" of everybody else.
When there's a sale for e.g. new customers, you being a returning customer doesn't mean you're suddenly getting ripped off when paying (or in this case being paid) the rate you've always been happy to pay or be paid.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday April 14 2017, @02:59PM
No, but it does help to occasionally become a new customer all over again, again and again, especially with ISPs.
I don't like negotiating that way, but it's the only way to negotiate with a brick wall.
(Score: 2) by kaszz on Friday April 14 2017, @08:21AM (3 children)
Anyone else getting the feeling that Uber is plainly bad news?
Next time drivers will use two phones to "double-app" ? ;)
Oh the horror.. they aren't serfs yet!
(Score: 3, Informative) by takyon on Friday April 14 2017, @08:28AM
1. The "double-apping" drivers got bonuses.
2. The software was used between 2014 and 2016.
(ง ͠° ͟ل͜ ͡°)ง
[SIG] 10/28/2017: Soylent Upgrade v14 [soylentnews.org]
(Score: 1, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Friday April 14 2017, @02:45PM (1 child)
No, they seem quite incredible to me. In reality one of the main reason that I think our capitalist system has started to stall out is because companies aren't really competing. There's much more money to be made by implicit collusion (think most electronics products and companies) or overt agreements to not compete in the same territory (think Comcast and Time Warner). Companies like Uber are playing capitalism like it was meant to be played and that results in huge benefits to the customer and employee alike.
Compare this instance of them actively trying to offer more to employees for a competing company to how Google and Apple interact with regards to employees. When one Google recruiter dared shoot of an email about available opportunities at Google to an Apple employee, it eventually made its way up to Steve Jobs who managed in collusion with Eric Schmidt to have the recruiter fired [time.com] within 24 hours. Upon hearing the news of the recruiter losing her job, Steve Jobs responded with a smiley face.
Capitalism is supposed to be ware between companies for the sake of the consumer and employee. In reality it's more often companies colluding (often alongside political puppets) and attacking both consumer and employee alike to maximize their earn. So no, I don't think a company working to try to offer better lives for employees of a competing company is what I'd call "bad news."
(Score: 1) by Scruffy Beard 2 on Friday April 14 2017, @05:09PM
That is why I disagree with the "well defined contracts" guy.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday April 14 2017, @12:49PM (2 children)
From http://www.clausewitz.org/ [clausewitz.org]
"Business is war. Arm yourself."
War is Hell.
All's fair in love and war.
(Score: 1, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Friday April 14 2017, @05:27PM (1 child)
This war mentality has to go. Our strength is in community and working together. Competition can be good, but right now it is destroying our civilization.
(Score: 2) by bob_super on Friday April 14 2017, @06:17PM
> working together
I'm pretty sure I'm working harder than Joe, so I should get more than him.
Competition is natural, you evil commie!