Zipcar

In class today, we watched a TED talk by Rachel  Botsman, which can be watched here.  Botsman was educated n the University of Oxford as well as Harvard University.  She is the co-author of the influential book What's Mine is Yours: The Rise of Collaborative Consumption, published in 2010.  She is an inspiring speaker who talks about topics related to technology and innovation.  


After watching her TED talk today, the class had to pick, at random, a company/website/organization based around the idea of collaborative consumption.  I got Zipcar, "a membership-based car sharing company providing automobile reservations to its members, billable by the hour or day."  This means that if an individual has a membership, they are eligible to reserve an automobile, and pay by the hour or the day.   Zipcar was founded in 2000 by Cambridge, Massachusetts residents Robin Chase and Antje Danielson, and is now led by Scott Griffith, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer.  Zipcar offers more than 30 makes and models of self-service vehicles by the hour or day.  The company offers over 8,000 vehicles in urban areas throughout 28 North American states and provinces.  The company also thrives in the United Kingdom, and has over 500,000 members referred to as "Zipsters."  Zipster also has presence on over 225 college campuses.


Members can reserve Zipcars online or by phone 24/7, and reservations can be made from minutes up to a year in advance.  Zipcar members have automated access to Zipcars using an access card called a “Zipcard,” which works with the car's technology to unlock the door, where the keys are already located inside.  Zipcar charges a one-time application fee of $25, and an annual fee of $50, and reservation rates start from $8 per hour and $66 per day. Gas, parking, insurance, and maintenance are included in the price.