Sidecar Technologies Inc, the third-biggest US car-hailing service, said it is ending its ride-and-delivery operations as the company is squeezed out by better-known competitors Uber Technologies Inc and Lyft Inc
One of the pioneers of the ride-sharing concept, Sidecar is to end its service today, cofounders Sunil Paul and Jahan Khanna wrote in a blog post.
The move will help pave the way for the “next big adventure in 2016,” the letter said.
“Shutting down the Sidecar service is a disappointment for our team and our fans,” Paul and Khanna said in the letter. “The impact of our work, however, will be felt for generations to come.”
Founded four years ago, Sidecar created one of the first apps to try ride-destination tracking, discounted carpooling and deliveries that placed people and packages on the same route, its founders said. The closely held San Francisco-based company shifted from transporting passengers to goods after struggling to compete with Uber and Lyft, CB Insights said.
“They’re competing with very heavily funded companies, and they didn’t have the same pull with drivers that these other companies might have,” CB Insights technology analyst Nikhil Krishnan said. “Even when it pivoted to transporting goods, it still had to compete with Postmates, and even Uber is transporting goods.”
Sidecar has raised about US$35 million, company spokeswoman Margaret Ryan said. That number pales in comparison with venture capital raised by Uber and Lyft. Bloomberg News reported earlier this month that Uber is seeking US$2.1 billion in a financing round that would value the car-booking company at US$62.5 billion.
Lyft, the No. 2 ride-hailing service, is seeking to raise US$500 million, according to fundraising documents obtained by Bloomberg last month. Sidecar’s investors include Union Square Ventures, Google Ventures and Richard Branson.
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