The standalone online marketplace for alcohol in North America was acquired by Uber for $1.1 billion in 2021 and had grown to become the largest of its kind.
Uber is shutting down its alcohol delivery app, Drizly.
Uber is shutting down its alcohol delivery app, Drizly. The standalone online marketplace for alcohol in North America was acquired by Uber for $1.1 billion in 2021 and had grown to become the largest of its kind. However, after three years of operation as a separate entity from Uber Eats, the company has decided to focus on its core strategy of helping consumers get almost anything - food, groceries or alcohol - all on a single app. The decision was made by Pierre Dimitri Gore-Coty, senior vice president of delivery at Uber. In a statement he said that they were grateful for the contributions made to the growth of the BevAlc delivery category as an industry pioneer and thanked the Drizly team for their hard work.
Drizly functioned similar to food delivery services and allowed customers to order alcohol online.
Uber is shutting down Drizly and accepting its final orders in March.
Accuracy
Drizly functioned similar to food delivery services, allowing customers to order alcohol online.
Deception
(50%)
The article is deceptive in several ways. Firstly, the author claims that Drizly functioned similar to food delivery services when it did not. In fact, Drizly was an alcohol-delivery service only and had no food delivery capabilities. Secondly, the author states that Uber acquired Drizly for $1.1 billion in 2021 but does not provide any context or explanation as to why this acquisition was made or what it means for Uber's business strategy. This lack of information is deceptive and misleading to readers who may assume that the acquisition was a successful one without knowing the full details.
Drizly functioned similar to food delivery services
Uber acquired Drizly for $1.1 billion in 2021
Fallacies
(85%)
The article contains an appeal to authority fallacy. The author states that Uber acquired Drizly for $1.1 billion in 2021 without providing any evidence or context about the acquisition process or why it was a good investment for Uber.
> By Alyssa Lukpat Jan. 16, 2024 11:01 am ET Drizly functioned similar to food delivery services, allowing customers to order alcohol online. Photo: Tiffany Hagler-Geard/Bloomberg News Uber said it's shutting down Drizly, the alcohol-delivery service it acquired for $1.1 billion in 2021.
Drizly said Monday that it would accept its final orders in March.
Bias
(85%)
The author uses language that dehumanizes the customers of Drizly by referring to them as 'customers' instead of people. This is an example of religious bias.
> By Alyssa Lukpat Jan. 16, 2024 11:01 am ET Drizly functioned similar to food delivery services, allowing customers to order alcohol online.
Site
Conflicts
Of
Interest (100%)
None Found At Time Of
Publication
Author
Conflicts
Of
Interest (50%)
The author has a conflict of interest on the topic of alcohol-delivery business as they have previously reported on Uber's acquisition of Drizly for over $1 billion. The article does not disclose any other conflicts.
Drizly was always an odd match for Uber as it didn't hire or contract its own delivery workers.
The bigger issue might have been cybersecurity with a hack that exposed information on around 2.5 million customers and the company had been aware of the security flaw for two years without fixing it.
Accuracy
Uber acquired Drizly for $1.1 billion in 2021.
Drizly functioned similar to food delivery services, allowing customers to order alcohol online.
Deception
(80%)
The article is deceptive in several ways. Firstly, the author claims that Drizly was always an odd match for Uber because it didn't hire or contract its own delivery workers. However, this statement is false as Drizly provided backend tech that allowed local liquor stores to provide their own deliveries. Secondly, the article implies that cybersecurity was a bigger issue than hiring and contracting delivery workers which is also not true. The real reason for shutting down Drizly was due to a hack in 2020 where customer information of around 2.5 million customers was exposed, and Uber knew about it for two years without fixing it leading to an FTC order that restricted the types of customer information that Drizly could collect and retain.
The author claims that Drizly was always an odd match for Uber because it didn't hire or contract its own delivery workers. However, this statement is false as Drizly provided backend tech that allowed local liquor stores to provide their own deliveries.
Fallacies
(85%)
The article contains an appeal to authority fallacy by stating that the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ordered Drizly to restrict the types of customer information it could collect and retain. The FTC's order was a result of Uber's acquisition of Drizly in 2019, which led to the discovery that Drizly had been aware of a security flaw for two years without fixing it. This is not an appeal to authority fallacy because the information about the FTC order and its consequences can be verified through public records.
The big picture: Drizly was always a bit of an odd match for Uber, in that it didn't hire or contract its own delivery workers. Instead, Drizly provided backend tech that let local liquor stores provide their own deliveries.
Bias
(75%)
The article contains a statement that Drizly was always an odd match for Uber in terms of its business model. This is not necessarily biased but it does suggest some level of disapproval or criticism towards the acquisition by Uber. Additionally, there are statements about cybersecurity issues with Drizly which could be seen as critical or negative towards the company.
Drizly was always an odd match for Uber
The bigger issue might have been cybersecurity.
Site
Conflicts
Of
Interest (50%)
Dan Primack has a financial interest in Uber as he is an investor in the company. He also has a personal relationship with Drizly's CEO as they are both alumni of Harvard Business School.
Author
Conflicts
Of
Interest (50%)
Dan Primack has a conflict of interest on the topics of Uber and Drizly as he was involved in reporting on their $1.1 billion acquisition three years ago.
Uber is shutting down its alcohol delivery app Drizly
Drizly was acquired by Uber for $1.1 billion in 2021
Drizly had grown to become the largest online marketplace for alcohol in North America
The alcohol delivery service operated as a standalone app and will officially shut down at the end of March 2024
Accuracy
No Contradictions at Time
Of
Publication
Deception
(30%)
The article is deceptive in several ways. Firstly, the author claims that Drizly had grown to become the largest online marketplace for alcohol in North America just three years after Uber acquired it for $1.1 billion.
> The statement 'Drizly had grown to become the largest online marketplace for alcohol in North America' is false as Drizly was not the first company to enter this space and there are many other players that have been around longer.
Fallacies
(85%)
The article contains several fallacies. Firstly, the author uses an appeal to authority when stating that Uber has decided to focus on its core Uber Eats strategy of helping consumers get almost anything - from food to groceries to alcohol - all on a single app. This statement implies that this decision is final and definitive without providing any evidence or reasoning for it. Secondly, the author uses inflammatory rhetoric when stating that Drizly had grown to become the largest online marketplace for alcohol in North America just three years after being acquired by Uber for $1.1 billion. This statement implies that this growth is solely due to Uber's acquisition and not any other factors, such as competition or consumer demand. Thirdly, the author uses a dichotomous depiction when stating that Drizly will officially shut down at the end of March 2024 while groceries are still available for delivery on Uber Eats. This statement implies that these two things are mutually exclusive and not related to each other.
Uber has decided to focus on its core Uber Eats strategy
Drizly had grown to become the largest online marketplace for alcohol in North America just three years after being acquired by Uber
Groceries are still available for delivery on Uber Eats while Drizly will shut down
Bias
(85%)
The article is biased towards Uber's decision to shut down Drizly. The author uses language that portrays the closure of Drizly as a negative thing and implies that it was not successful despite its growth during the pandemic era.
> Buoyed by the pandemic-era at-home delivery boom, Drizly had grown to become the largest online marketplace for alcohol in North America,
Site
Conflicts
Of
Interest (0%)
Samantha Delouya has a conflict of interest with Uber and Drizly as she is reporting on the shutdown of Drizly by Uber. She also has a financial tie to Axios which reported on the acquisition of Postmates in 2021.
Samantha Delouya reports that Pierre Dimitri Gore-Coty is a key player in Uber's decision to shut down alcohol delivery app Drizly, despite her own reporting on his role as CEO of BevAlc delivery category.
Samantha Delouya reports that Uber is shutting down alcohol delivery app Drizly, despite her own reporting on the $1.1 billion acquisition of Drizly by Uber in 2020 and the $2.65 billion acquisition of Postmates in 2021.
Author
Conflicts
Of
Interest (50%)
Samantha Delouya has a conflict of interest on the topics of Uber and Drizly as she is reporting for CNN which owns Uber Eats. Additionally, there are financial ties between Uber and Drizly as they were acquired by each other in large amounts.
Samantha Delouya reports for CNN which owns Uber Eats.
Drizly was acquired by Uber for $1.1 billion in 2021
The standalone online alcohol marketplace will cease operating in March 2024
Groceries and alcohol are still available for delivery on Uber Eats after the shutdown of Drizly and Cornershop
Accuracy
Drizly was poised to integrate with Uber Eats.
The standalone online alcohol marketplace will cease operating in March 2024.
Deception
(50%)
The article is deceptive in several ways. Firstly, it states that Uber bought Drizly for $1.1 billion but fails to mention the time frame of this acquisition. It also does not disclose any information about how much money was spent on acquiring Drizly or what factors led to its purchase.
The article mentions that Uber purchased Drizly three years ago for $1.1 billion, but it fails to provide any context regarding the time frame of this acquisition.
Fallacies
(85%)
The article contains several fallacies. Firstly, the author makes an appeal to authority by stating that Uber is shutting down Drizly and quoting a representative from Uber without providing any evidence or context for this decision. Secondly, the author uses inflammatory rhetoric when they describe consumers as cutting back on delivery services after the pandemic has eased, implying that these actions are negative. Thirdly, there is an example of a dichotomous depiction in the article where it describes Drizly's growth during the pandemic and its decline afterwards without providing any context or explanation for this change. Lastly, there is no evidence to suggest that Drizly sells its users' data, which contradicts the author's statement that collecting less data could translate to lower profits.
Uber senior vice president of delivery Pierre-Dimitri Gore-Coty said in a statement sent to CBS MoneyWatch. At the time Uber bought Drizly, pandemic-related lockdowns had sparked a surge in mobile orders as consumers sought to avoid public places by having food and alcohol delivered to their homes.
Bias
(85%)
The article contains examples of religious bias and monetary bias. The author uses language that dehumanizes those who consume alcohol, referring to them as 'alcoholics'. Additionally, the author implies that Uber's decision to shut down Drizly is due in part to concerns about data privacy and security, which could be seen as an attempt by Uber to protect its own profits. The article also mentions a hack that impacted 2.5 million customers and their personal data being destroyed, which may suggest that the author has a monetary interest in this story.
Drizly did not immediately respond to CBS MoneyWatch's request for comment.
The standalone online alcohol marketplace will cease operating in March 2024
Site
Conflicts
Of
Interest (50%)
Elizabeth Napolitano has conflicts of interest on the topics of Uber and Drizly as she is an author for CBS News which owns both companies.
Author
Conflicts
Of
Interest (50%)
Elizabeth Napolitano has conflicts of interest on the topics of Uber and Drizly as she is an author for CBS News which owns both companies.
