Uber Taxi tries again days after NYC back-out with new services in San Francisco

Ride-sharing app company Uber began testing a smartphone taxi hailing service in San Francisco just two days after pulling the plug on a similar but controversial test in New York City.

Uber is rolling out cab service in its own home city despite the fact that San Francisco and state regulators attempted to shut down other high-tech alternatives to the way taxis normally operate. In a blog post, Uber acknowledged it was pushing the envelope.

"This is a major addition, and pretty bold," said the post written by Uber community manager Matt Hearns. "To be honest, this is a bit of an experiment for our users. ... So why are we doing this crazy experiment? Because choice is a beautiful thing."