Uber job listing hints at sharper focus on subscriptions for drivers
By Natalie Lung, Bloomberg
An Uber Technologies Inc. job posting suggests the rideshare company is stepping up efforts to test a subscription offering for more of its drivers around the world, following smaller upstarts that have found success with this alternative model.
The company is hiring for a New York-based product manager to “define and execute product strategies that create net-new subscription packages” for its drivers and couriers, according to a listing posted this week. The candidate will also “create a cohesive strategy for global testing and expansion,” and assess how this business model should evolve “given different responses from our competitors,” according to the posting.
Uber has already adopted a flat-fee structure for drivers in India. It is unclear if and to what extent it will ultimately adopt a subscription model more broadly. A company spokesperson didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.
Until now, San Francisco-based Uber has made money from the majority of rides by taking a commission from drivers for each trip. It is sharpening its focus on subscriptions at a time when emerging competitors in the US and abroad are tempting prospective drivers with a flat fee that lets them keep more of each fare. Depending on competitive dynamics in a market, subscription models that allow for flexibility in how fares are set can attract more drivers to a platform, which can potentially lead to lower prices for customers.
Meanwhile, trip prices have been on the rise, and some research suggests that consumers are at risk of pulling back on car bookings if they get much more expensive. Ride prices rose 9.6% in December 2025 from a year earlier, while platform fee per trip increased 33%, according to a report by gig-work analytics firm Gridwise published Thursday. At the same time, gross driver pay per trip only rose 3.6% in the same period.
About 60% of consumers said they have reduced rideshare usage due to pricing, and 55% said they would cut back further if prices increase even more, according to the report.
In India, Uber transitioned to a subscription structure following the success of local rival Rapido, which is growing faster, Bloomberg reported last year.
In the US, the seven-year-old ride-hailing app Empower has recently been gaining traction in the key New York City market, touting rides that cost 20% less than Uber or Lyft Inc. trips. It has accomplished this, indirectly, by putting drivers on subscription plans rather than taking commissions from each trip. It also does not pass on fees and surcharges that the regulator imposes on licensed bases to riders, contributing to lower fares.
Empower had 682,000 monthly active users as of February, up about 79% from May, according to market intelligence firm Sensor Tower. The ride-hailing company didn’t respond to requests for comment on the size of its ridership and the number of active drivers.
Despite the fact that New York’s taxi regulator declared Empower an illegal app for failing to register for a vehicle dispatcher license, the service’s monthly active users in the New York metropolitan area jumped 155% to 92,000 in January since last May, according to market intelligence firm Sensor Tower. It has also defied a court order to stop operating in Washington, DC.
“Empower is growing incredibly fast because our business model is so much better for drivers and riders that it comes as no surprise that Uber is attempting to copy us,” founder and Chief Executive Officer Joshua Sear said in an interview. “We’re just surprised it took them this long.”
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