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By Bloomberg

France plans to ban Uber Technologies Inc.’s UberPop car service, three days after a Paris judge rejected a bid to block the smartphone application that lets users get rides with private cars.

“Not only is it illegal to propose this service, but there is a real risk for the consumer,” Pierre-Henry Brandet, an Interior Ministry spokesman, said in an interview with the i- Tele news channel. The ban will take effect Jan. 1, he said.

A representative for Uber in London didn’t immediately return a phone call seeking comment.

The ministry’s announcement comes on the same day that Paris taxi drivers plan a demonstration that includes blocking the ring highway around the capital to protest San Francisco- based Uber. Governments around the world are stepping up regulation of Uber, a service that has angered licensed taxi drivers who say it’s unfair competition.

The startup was sued last week by the district attorneys of Los Angeles and San Francisco over claims it makes false assurances about drivers’ background checks. That followed a ban in Spain, while Rio de Janeiro declared the service illegal and the Netherlands halted its ride-sharing offer.

Uber’s other services, including the more expensive UberX, whose drivers are required to have a permit, weren’t at risk in the Paris court decision last week. There’s no question of banning Uber entirely in France, Economy Minister Emmanuel Macron has said.

Uber says it has 500,000 regular users in France. Paris was the first European city in which Uber introduced service.

A Paris court fined Uber 100,000 euros ($124,000) this year for labeling UberPop as carpooling, a decision the company contested. Veolia Transdev SA, which owns some taxi activities, is among rivals that have taken the battle against UberPop to the commercial court in the French capital.