Hertz's 101-Year-Old Business Nearing Twilight in Uber Age
- Car renters face the sort of threat that befell Blockbuster
- More travelers tapping apps rather than lining up at counters
Avis Earnings Miss Raises Concerns for Hertz
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At the dawn of America’s automobile age, a Nebraskan by the name of Joe Saunders came up with a wild idea: He’d rent his Ford Model T to traveling salesmen.
Today, 101 years later, his figurative heirs -- Saunders later sold out to a Chicagoan named Hertz -- confront an existential question: Can the U.S. car-rental business thrive in the era of Uber Technologies Inc., Lyft Inc. and, one day, autonomous vehicles?