Spain: Regulator urges removal of obstacles to Uber’s return

Taxi-hailing service Uber could see a temporary ban in Spain overturned after a regulator said on Thursday it had asked the government to remove restrictions on its service, saying they were anti-competitive.

Uber, embroiled in disputes with authorities around the world after aggressive international expansion, suspended its service in Spain in 2014 when a judge imposed an injunction after a request from Madrid’s taxi association.

The judge also ordered telecommunications and electronic payment companies to ban transactions from Uber, which allows customers to book and pay for a taxi on their smartphones.

Spain’s competition regulator said the ministry’s requirement that private hire cars only carry passengers with prior bookings and its ban on allowing passengers to hail them in the street were unjustified.

“It reduces competition in urban passenger transport services and shields the monopoly regime in the taxi market,” the statement said.

More competition would benefit the consumer because there would be more vehicles available, shorter wait times and lower prices, it added.

Full content: Reuters

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