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Supplement | HBS Case Collection | November 2016

Uber in China: Driving in the Gray Zone (B)

by William C. Kirby, Yuanzhuo Wang, Shuang L. Frost and Adam K. Frost

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Abstract

Starting in 2014, for two years Uber had fought an intense, costly battle for China’s ridesharing market with well-financed and well-connected domestic Chinese competitors. During this time, Uber also had to respond to an ever-shifting regulatory landscape that looked increasingly bleak in 2016. Then on August 1, 2016 Uber CEO Travis Kalanick shocked the global ridesharing industry by selling the company’s China operations to arch rival Didi Chuxing. Given the competition from domestic rivals and the uncertainties of government regulation, was the decision to exit China the right one for Uber? What does this latest reconfiguration of the market mean for China's burgeoning ridesharing industry? What lessons could other tech companies learn from Uber’s experiences in China?

Keywords: China; Uber; Didi Chuxing; Start-up growth; regulation; transportation; Ride-sharing; Transportation; Business Startups; Growth and Development; Cross-Cultural and Cross-Border Issues; Transportation Industry; Technology Industry; China;

Language: English Format: Print 11 pages Purchase

Citation:

Kirby, William C., Yuanzhuo Wang, Shuang L. Frost, and Adam K. Frost. "Uber in China: Driving in the Gray Zone (B)." Harvard Business School Supplement 317-064, November 2016.

About the Author

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William C. Kirby
T. M. Chang Professor of China Studies, Spangler Family Professor of Business Administration
General Management

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More from the Author

  • Supplement | HBS Case Collection | January 2018 (Revised May 2018)

    Wanxiang Group: A Chinese Company's Global Strategy (C)

    William C. Kirby, Yuanzhuo Wang, William C. Kirby and Yuanzhuo Wang

    This case updates Wanxiang Group's activities since 2012, focusing on its electric vehicle strategy and a transition of the group's leadership.

    Keywords: electric vehicles; leadership succession; Strategy; Management Succession; Global Range; Auto Industry; United States; China;

    Citation:

    Kirby, William C., and Yuanzhuo Wang. "Wanxiang Group: A Chinese Company's Global Strategy (C)." Harvard Business School Supplement 318-091, January 2018. (Revised May 2018.)  View Details
    CiteView DetailsPurchase Related
  • Supplement | HBS Case Collection | January 2018 (Revised May 2018)

    Wanxiang Group: A Chinese Company's Global Strategy (C)

    William C. Kirby, Yuanzhuo Wang, William C. Kirby and Yuanzhuo Wang

    This case updates Wanxiang Group's activities since 2012, focusing on its electric vehicle strategy and a transition of the group's leadership.

    Keywords: electric vehicles; leadership succession; Strategy; Management Succession; Global Range; Auto Industry; United States; China;

    Citation:

    Kirby, William C., and Yuanzhuo Wang. "Wanxiang Group: A Chinese Company's Global Strategy (C)." Harvard Business School Supplement 318-091, January 2018. (Revised May 2018.)  View Details
    CiteView DetailsPurchase Related
  • Case | HBS Case Collection | February 2018 (Revised April 2018)

    Yunnan Baiyao: Transforming a Chinese State-Owned Enterprise

    Michael Chu, William C. Kirby, Nancy Hua Dai, Yuanzhuo Wang, Michael Chu, William C. Kirby, Nancy Hua Dai and Yuanzhuo Wang

    This case tells the story of how Wang Minghui, Chairman of Yunnan Baiyao Group since 1999, transformed a single-product traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) state-owned enterprise (SOE) into a major diversified consumer health player in China's highly competitive fast-moving consumer goods market. The case also traces the development of the company from a private business to a SOE and then to a SOE under mixed state-private ownership.

    Keywords: state-owned enterprise (SOE); competition; traditional chinese medicine; Yunnan; Yunnan Baiyao; consumer health; enterprise transformation; Transformation; Health; Business History; State Ownership; Private Ownership; Business Strategy; Commercialization; Competition; Consumer Products Industry; Health Industry; Pharmaceutical Industry; China;

    Citation:

    Chu, Michael, William C. Kirby, Nancy Hua Dai, and Yuanzhuo Wang. "Yunnan Baiyao: Transforming a Chinese State-Owned Enterprise." Harvard Business School Case 318-078, February 2018. (Revised April 2018.)  View Details
    CiteView DetailsEducators Related
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