Court bans Uber from using app to arrange car rides in Germany
Xinhua
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UBER CGTN.jpg

(Photo: CGTN)

BERLIN, Dec. 19 (Xinhua) -- Following a ruling by the Frankfurt Regional Court on Thursday, the US ride-hailing company Uber would no longer be allowed to use its app to arrange car trips for rental companies in Germany.

According to the court ruling, the Uber ride-hailing service would not have the required license for passenger transport in Germany. "Uber undoubtedly does not have this concession," said judge Annette Theimer in her statement.

With the ruling, the German court granted the injunction suit filed by Taxi Deutschland, an association of various German taxi companies. The judgement was not yet final, so Uber would have the possibility to appeal against it.

"We will examine the reasons for the judgement carefully and then take the necessary steps to be able to continue to offer our service in Germany reliably," said an Uber spokesperson.

"We welcome the judgement, because the Frankfurt Regional Court has made it clear that the Uber system is illegal in Germany," explained Michael Oppermann, managing director of the German Taxi and Rental Car Association, adding that Uber would be requested "to cease its illegal activities immediately."

In December 2018, Germany's highest court had already decided that the Uber Black service, the limousine service from Uber, could no longer be offered in Germany.

With reference to the court ruling, the German digital association Bitkom on Thursday called for an amendment to the law on passenger transport in the country.

"The law dates back to a time when, in addition to private cars and buses and trains, there was only the taxi for personal mobility and the smartphone was not even invented," said Bitkom CEO Bernhard Rohleder.