Uber is benefiting from a few uber-famous friends in its fight against New York City mayor Bill de Blasio.
New York City is debating a possible cap this week on the number of new car-hailing vehicles that could be added over the next year, in an effort to crack down on congestion and study the fast rise of newer startups like Uber and Lyft.
Uber, which has run up against regulatory pushback in markets around the country and the world, has resorted to its tried and tested playbook of prompting users to protest through its application, mobilizing lobbyists and political allies and using a portion of the billions it has raised in private financing to run ads against Mayor De Blasio.
Having a few celebrities in the mix certainly doesn't hurt.
Model Kate Upton, actor Neil Patrick Harris and actor/venture capitalist Ashton Kutcher -- who just happens to be an Uber investor -- threw their support behind the car-hailing service this week on social media. Their combined Twitter power: theoretically, nearly 37 million followers, 17 million of them from Kutcher, 17.5 million from Harris and 2 million from Upton. (There may be overlap, as people could follow all three).
Kutcher was the most active, with a tweetstorm stretching over several days that expressed annoyance through facts, links and exclamation marks. In his zeal to find other supporters, Kutcher reached deep, retweeting a man from New Jersey with just 36 followers, whose tweet is now being read by millions.
.@BilldeBlasio Why do you want to return to days when only those in Midtown & Lower Manhattan could get a ride? #UberMovesNYC— Kate Upton (@KateUpton) July 22, 2015
.@BilldeBlasio: 25K new residents use @Uber_NYC each week. How is a fixed # of cars supposed to serve this demand for rides? #UberMovesNYC— Neil Patrick Harris (@ActuallyNPH) July 22, 2015
Vote to keep #Uber moving in New York— ashton kutcher (@aplusk) July 22, 2015
This isn't a conservative or liberal debate it's about politicians representing their personal interests and not their community. #uberNYC— ashton kutcher (@aplusk) July 22, 2015
10,000 jobs is nothing to scoff at, @BilldeBlasio #uberNYC— ashton kutcher (@aplusk) July 22, 2015
NYC council member explain to teachers who drive #uber to subsidize their income that they won't have a job cause U took 25k from a taxi co— ashton kutcher (@aplusk) July 22, 2015
@aplusk the mayor wants jobs in the city but only for the companies he chooses.— mark matuozzi (@mtouzzi) July 22, 2015