Indeed, the ultra-cynical view is that they are now desperate for government regulation to ossify the market because without a lock in (similar to what taxi companies used to enjoy pre-Uber) profits drop to 0 and stay there.

Raw capitalism should drive companies like Uber out of business as a billion-dollar company. They can always be undercut by a group of drivers in a locality starting a new app and stealing the local regulars (identical service, lower cost because no Uber premium) leaving Uber with only non-local traffic. Apps are not expensive.