Media outlets everywhere shouted news that the 3-year-old ride-sharing service Uber charted an eye-popping valuation of up to $18.2 billion, after closing its venture capital round that raised $1.2 billion. In fact, by Forbes’ numbers, Uber is now worth more than Avis and Hyatt combined. For those who have been sequestered with monks somewhere up in the Himalayas, here’s what’s behind all the fuss. With Uber, customers can send a text message on a mobile app through the service to reserve a car. Uber charges for the ride based on distance traveled, or time, or demand, or a combination of all three. Uber is also the latest case study of how the “Internet of Things” is driving both innovation and disruption, if you’ll excuse the pun. The IoT is a phenomenon that is both real and here today. Just ask Uber and their customers. It not only means better, more personalized service, it means billions of connected devices resulting in billions and billions of dollars. http://bit.ly/1m2sULF
Advancing The Science of Networks in Communities