A Paris court fined the French subsidiary of U.S. app-based ride service Uber 100,000 euros ($128,000) on Thursday for fraudulent business practices after it advertised its paid transportation service UberPop as a car pool.<\/p>\n
UberPop, which the private company launched about a year ago in Paris, links private drivers with passengers. Called a “ride-sharing solution” by Uber, the service is now available in five other French cities.<\/p>\n
The court ordered that Uber post Thursday’s ruling on its websites.<\/p>\n
The San Francisco start-up said in a statement it would continue to operate UberPop while it appeals parts of the decision.<\/p>\n
“This decision does not call into question the service,” Uber France CEO Thibaud Simphal told Reuters. “They just have to set the conditions in which we can do it.”<\/p>\n
Courts in Germany have banned UberPop and the company’s low-cost limousine pick-up service UberBlack, saying their drivers do not comply with German law for the commercial transport of passengers.<\/p>\n
Uber, which is available in 43 countries and was recently valued at $18 billion, has faced disputes with taxi operators and regulatory issues in many cities where it operates, including in San Francisco.<\/p>\n
Taxi drivers in Paris blocked traffic into the city center in a protest against Uber in June, action duplicated in London, Berlin and Madrid.<\/p>\n
Uber taxi SA to offer free WiFi<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n Taxi drivers rise against Uber<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n