The transportation company has passed the incredible milestone of 1 billion rides, since it has first started back in 2010, on Christmas Day. Because of this, Uber rewards its one billionth customer with one year of free Uber services, estimated to reach a total amount of 10.000 British pounds. The driver making this billionth ride was not forgotten, the company giving him a free trip to the Uber city of his own choosing.

The ride that marked this milestone was made in the UK, on a trip between Hackney and Hoxton. The Uber company will also donate to the Hackney Pirates charity foundation that serves the neighborhood from where this journey started.

The company has come a long way since its inception back in 2010, surpassing almost every taxi company along its way to the top. Its services are now available in over 68 countries, with over 370 covered cities. Its net market value stands at $65 billion though this does not mean that every ride taken until now was priced at $65. It is merely a sum given by investors that currently see Uber’s constant increase as advantageous.

Although several other services have popped up across the globe, with business practices similar to Uber, they have not yet managed to even gain a small fraction of popularity from the now gigantic Uber. The recent news in regards to the competitor Sidecar going bankrupt has also helped in maintaining the company’s steady growth.

But this does not mean that Uber is infallible, currently facing numerous regulatory obstacles put in place by transportation businesses and taxi companies around the world. The biggest challenges come from the Indian and the Chinese market sector, where the company is facing some pretty tough competitors.

In China, the government is currently blocking off Uber from the most popular social network, WeChat, backed up by taxi company Didi in partnership with Tencent. In India, the recent event where a Uber driver raped on of his passengers has installed a government ban towards the company, while their competitor Ola is steadily expanding across the country. A partnership between Didi and Ola, alongside other companies, has been created in order to fight off the US-based Uber.

If Uber hopes to prove its investors right in regards to their positive assessments, it will have to step up its game in the two aforementioned countries. If they will not be able to achieve this, their growth might come to an abrupt halt in the near future.

Even so, more and more drivers have been signing up at Uber over the past couple of years and it seems like this trend is far from stopping in 2016. Because of this, chances that the next milestone of 2 billion will be passed before the end of next year are still slightly positive.

At least, because Uber rewards its one billionth customer with one year of free Uber services, the company still proves to be one of the most user-friendly companies from this sector. Even if its future may be slightly covered in mystery, Uber will keep expanding on and on through diverse campaigns, like kitten and vaccine deliveries, as well as affordable services.

Image source:www.uber.com