Italian judge lifts ban on Uber services after appeal

An Italian judge has ruled in an appeal that Uber may offer its services in the country. In April, a lower court ordered a ban after taxi companies filed a case.

The taxi companies believed that Uber is guilty of unfair competition. They themselves have to adhere to strict rules, while there is hardly any regulation for apps such as Uber, Reuters news agency writes in response to the decision. After the ruling, Uber announced that its app will continue to be allowed in Italy.

The ban imposed in April was accompanied by a fine of 10,000 euros per day if Uber failed to comply with the measure within ten days. Shortly afterwards, however, the ban was temporarily lifted again to await the verdict in the appeal case. Due to the current ruling, the cancellation will remain in effect.

According to Politico, the lawsuit was against various services of the American company, including UberBlack. UberPop, which allows drivers to transport people without a license, has been banned in Italy since 2015. Taxi drivers staged strikes in February to protest the growing number of transportation apps. The Italian government plans to introduce regulations by the end of this year.

The European Court of Justice is considering whether Uber should be seen as a taxi company or as an online service. In an advice, which is often followed, the attorney general stated at the beginning of this month that Uber mainly derives its value from car rides and is therefore primarily a service in the transport sector.