A ride-sharing driver in St. Louis who reportedly live streams his passengers has been suspended by Uber for violating its guidelines, the company said on Saturday.
A ride-sharing driver in St. Louis who reportedly live streams his passengers has been suspended by Uber for violating its guidelines, the company said on Saturday.
In a lengthy profile on Saturday, The St. Louis Post-Dispatch told the story of Jason Gargac, a 32-year old Uber and Lyft driver who built a following on Twitch by broadcasting people who hailed his vehicle – some of them children. During each ride, more than 4,0000 viewers on his Twitch stream indulged in real-time commentary that frequently delved into crude, mocking and judgmental. According to the report, Missouri doesn’t view the broadcasts as a violation of state law.
Uber, however, did see Gargac’s impromptu reality shows a breach of its standards. Reacting swiftly to the Dispatch story, the ride-hailing service told CNBC in a statement it had revoked Gargac’s credentials “while we evaluate his partnership with Uber.”
According to its community guidelines, drivers are forbidden to demonstrate “any form of inappropriate or disrespectful behavior including commenting on someone’s appearance or that are otherwise disrespectful or sexual in nature.”
Uber, which has been reeling from issues stemming from its corporate culture, has grappled with several high-profile cases of driver misconduct .
Lyft and Gargac, the driver profiled by The Post-Dispatch, could not immediately be reached for comment by CNBC.
