Like Tree29Likes

China’s bike sharing startups are pulling out of everywhere

Closed Thread
Page 1 of 2 1 2 LastLast
  1. #1

    Join Date
    Jan 2011
    Posts
    2,254

    China’s bike sharing startups are pulling out of everywhere

    Backpedaling: Why China’s bike-sharing startups are pulling out everywhere
    Ofo reportedly plans to quit Germany, Australia, Israel, the Czech Republic, Austria, and India, in addition to significantly scaling back in other markets like the US and the UK. It is also said to be facing difficulties in Singapore.

  2. #2

    Join Date
    May 2009
    Posts
    6,181

    Feels really good to start the day with some positive news.

    ramelec and huja like this.

  3. #3

    Join Date
    Aug 2012
    Location
    Location Location
    Posts
    1,201

    This is nothing about them facing difficulties. Their business model has been based on the following:
    - Place cheap bikes in very visible locations, so it appears there is a wide network
    - get loads of people to subscribe to their services
    - take their deposits for using bikes
    - don't maintain, go bust
    - disappear, don't return the deposits.

    This is why we can't have nice things.

    ramelec, huja and MABinPengChau like this.

  4. #4

    Join Date
    May 2009
    Posts
    6,181

    @greenmark
    And I thought that business model was exclusive to fitness studios...

    Anyway, that there are now what feels like 20 companies doing rentals will certainly not help profitability.

    And then the quality of the bikes. I look at them and feel that walking is more comfortable.


  5. #5

    Join Date
    Dec 2002
    Location
    薄扶林
    Posts
    47,967
    Anyway, that there are now what feels like 20 companies doing rentals will certainly not help profitability.
    You've been in HK long enough to remember the great Macau Egg Tart war?
    spode and flameproof like this.

  6. #6

    Join Date
    Mar 2007
    Posts
    1,674
    Original Post Deleted
    I don't understand this.

  7. #7

    Join Date
    Nov 2008
    Posts
    4,574

    It's a shame because this kind of service could certainly help in cities such as Sydney.

    The biggest problem as usual are the idiots in society who do this:

    https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/...13-gz0hvq.html

    spode and MABinPengChau like this.

  8. #8

    Join Date
    Aug 2006
    Posts
    11,884

    I'm not sure that the "leave it anywhere" approach to bike sharing can work anywhere. The only places I've been impressed by bike schemes are where there are regulated pickup points such as London, NYC, Taipei.

    Are there cities where leave it anywhere works?


  9. #9

    Join Date
    Jan 2018
    Posts
    831

    This was never a good business model. Very gimmicky as those who have purchased bicycles, and who live in urban areas, know. These businesses are in the business of payments and float management. Hence why users face an uphill battle to recover their deposits and unused credits. Such platforms add little value to economies and are simply not good for society. In the case of bicycle sharing, thousands of bicycles polluting major cities with no thought on how to recycle them.

    shri likes this.

  10. #10

    Join Date
    May 2017
    Location
    New Territories West
    Posts
    1,359
    Quote Originally Posted by jgl:
    I'm not sure that the "leave it anywhere" approach to bike sharing can work anywhere. The only places I've been impressed by bike schemes are where there are regulated pickup points such as London, NYC, Taipei.

    Are there cities where leave it anywhere works?
    I often used them in Copenhagen when I lived there in 08/09 and those bikes were worse than Ofo... It worked well then, although I'm not sure if it still works or not.
    jgl likes this.

Closed Thread
Page 1 of 2 1 2 LastLast