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On Wednesday, a regional court banned Uber and Uber's low-cost UberPOP service across Germany.
Each new violation of the ban will result in a fine of 250,000 euros, or about $264,825, Reuters reports.
The current ruling relates only to Uber's UberPOP service, its low-cost service in Germany. uberTAXI and UberBLACK will continue operating.
The regional court's ruling is not final, and Uber plans to appeal the ban, according to a spokesperson. In the meantime, UberPOP will continue to operate like usual.
Similar to some US taxi companies, taxi businesses abroad are wary of Uber. Wednesday's ban was brought on by lobbyist group Taxi Deutschland, according to the Financial Times.
"In Germany, taxi drivers are subject to extensive regulations including health checks, fixed fares and liability insurance, which taxi companies say is around eight times more expensive than a standard private driver's insurance," FT reported.
If this story sounds familiar, that's because it is. Uber has been having a hard time in Germany over the past few months.
In September, German courts upheld a ban on Uber. The Berlin and Hamburg courts said the company didn't comply with the country's transportation laws. Uber appealed those bans, which were later overturned on technical grounds.
Another reason Uber may be having a though time in Germany is because Germans are already used to being chauffeured around in nice cars. When you take Uber in the US, you feel like you're upgrading by traveling in a sedan or an SUV that's significantly nicer than a normal yellow taxi. But in Germany, taxis are Mercedes, Business Insider's Matt DeBord points out.
Perhaps to apply pressure to German legislators, Uber released a report this week with German economists on Uber's benefits.
It hasn't been a great day for Uber. On Wednesday, French police raided Uber's offices in Paris, and South Korea charged CEO Travis Kalanick with operating an illegal taxi service.
Uber provided Business Insider with the following statement from Fabien Nestmann, General Manager for Uber in Munich:
"We regret today's decision by the Frankfurt District Court to deny Uber the opportunity to contribute to improved and more affordable individual mobility.
We respect the German legal system. We will now wait to see the court's reasoning and review it thoroughly. In our opinion, however, the ban pronounced by the Court represents a fundamental infringement, in particular of our right under European law to establish and provide a service; this is why we have lodged a complaint against Germany with the European Commission. In this regard, we also expect to file an appeal against today's decision.
We will not give up on the German market: our UberBLACK and uberTAXI services remain unaffected by today's judgment; in addition, we are working on an alternative ridesharing service that we are developing specifically to fit the Court's interpretation of existing regulations in Germany.
We will continue the dialogue we initiated with German policymakers and regulators and assist them in creating a forward-looking framework for passenger transportation. We would appreciate the opportunity to work together on this with all the parties involved. Within Europe, for example, Belgium is working on new regulations that incorporate new mobility solutions."