week3

Uber Says Goodbye to Japan After Government Ruling

Ma Jie, Bloomberg

Mar 07, 2015 10:00 pm

Uber, whose taxi-hailing app faces regulatory challenges globally, shut down a ride- sharing trial in southwestern Japan after the government called it illegal.

Uber yesterday halted operation of Everyone’s Uber, a program that let users in Fukuoka city share rides, Evelyn Tay, a Singapore-based spokeswoman for the company, said in an e- mailed statement today. Uber will consult the Transport Ministry on ways to structure the program to meet official requirements, she said.

The move is a fresh blow to San Francisco-based Uber, whose ride-sharing functions are under scrutiny in cities from Paris to Seoul. Until now, the company avoided regulatory obstacles in Japan by working with taxi and hire-car operators in Tokyo. The Fukuoka program marked its first expansion outside Japan’s capital, where local taxi firms are pressuring Uber with their own apps.

Customers of the pilot program received free rides, while Uber paid drivers a fee for participating as it collected traffic and usage data. The service was illegal because it let drivers without taxi licenses profit by providing transport, ministry official Hidetaka Sakai said this week.

Uber has said it will revise the compensation model and continue to negotiate with authorities.

The purpose of the program, started jointly on Feb. 5 with the Kyushu Technology Licensing Organization, was to collect data to understand local transportation needs, Masami Takahashi, chief executive officer of Uber’s Japan unit, said in an interview last month.

Uber was able to “collect meaningful data for analysis that will shed light on transportation patterns in various areas (including underserved) of the city,” the company said today in a statement. “In the next phase, we will focus on better understanding specific transportation needs from the data collected.”

Uber’s presence in Tokyo is still small, partly due to increasing competition from apps introduced by local taxi operators and the city’s availability of 50,000 taxis — almost four times the number in New York.

http://skift.com/2015/03/07/uber-says-goodbye-to-japan-after-government-ruling/

Structure of the lead:

Who- Uber

What –shut down a ride- sharing trial

When- not given

Where- in Japan

How- not given

Why- the government called it illegal

Keywords:

1.      halt 禁止

2.      scrutiny 仔細檢查

                 

 week2-Lindt cafe to reopen in March with memorial to Sydney siege victims

The Lindt cafe in Martin Place - the scene of the Sydney siege in which a gunman and two hostages were killed - will reopen in March with a permanent memorial to the victims.Updated 12 Feb 2015, 4:36pm

The cafe, where lawyer Katrina Dawson and cafe manager Tori Johnson were killed after gunman Man Haron Monis took 18 hostages, has been boarded up since December.

The families of Ms Dawson and Mr Johnson welcomed news of the reopening and the new memorial.

"Although it will be difficult at first, we hope to be able in time to return to the Lindt cafe so that [Katrina's] children can continue to experience one of [her] great joys," said Ms Dawson's husband Paul Smith.

Mr Johnson's partner Thomas Zinn said he hoped to see Martin Place regain its status as an important social hub.

"[Tori] always had so much pleasure in making other people happy or [putting] a smile on their face," Mr Zinn said.

"We would like for people to return to Martin Place and smile again."

Lindt Australia chief executive officer Steve Loane said he did not expect all staff would want to return to work.

"The last few weeks have been like a rollercoaster [of] emotion for everybody, but they were really positive ... it's been amazing how strong they've been," Mr Loane said.

"Some of the team have indicated they do want to come back.

"But we've put no pressure on them and they can make their decisions closer to the date on how much involvement they want.

"And I'm sure there are some who will not want to come back to work."

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-02-12/lindt-cafe-to-reopen-with-memorial-to-sydney-siege-victims/6089548

Structure of the lead :

Who- the Lindt cafe

What-will reopen with a permanent memorial to the victims

When- in March

How-not given

Where- Martin Place in Sydney

Why- not given

Keywords:

1.      siege 包圍 圍攻

2.      hostage 人質