The MonkeyParking app will have to delay their hopes of solving the parking problem in the greater San Francisco area because of a cease-and-deisist order issued by the city.
MonkeyParking is one of several apps banned by the city that help drivers locate and reserve parking spots faster. The apps allow current occupants of a parking space to get paid to notify nearby drivers of their soon-to-be vacancy.
The city, clearly envious that they couldn’t figure out a way to profit from solving a problem on their own, declared the apps illegal.
San Francisco’s city attorney, Dennis Herrera, claims the apps are breaking the law because public parking spots can’t be leased without them getting all of the action.
Additionally, he said the ban is also because these apps “encourage drivers to use their mobile devices unsafely to engage in online bidding wars while driving.” Stop laughing. This isn’t satire.
Herrera threatened to fine anyone caught using the apps during this cease-and-desist period and even asked Apple to removed them from the iTunes app store – presumably to protect other metropolitan areas outside of his jurisdiction from such criminality.
We’ve seen incumbent cartels increasingly seek government’s protection against competition from voluntary apps like Uber and AirBnB. It’s getting quite easy to tell exactly who the government works for when they start banning voluntary apps that make people’s lives better.
Watch video report below: