That petition received more than 11,000 signatures; the Independent Driver's Guild estimated that including a tipping button would lead to a total of $300 million addition income per year for drivers. The TLC already requires that taxi cab payment screens, but it hasn't made the same requirement for ride-hailing apps just yet. And while the support of the TLC is important, this is far from a done deal -- but it's hard to see the downside for anyone aside from Uber, which has long claimed that its pricing takes gratuities into account.

While Uber hasn't yet added a tipping button to its app, Lyft has had one for a while now; it would already be in compliance with the proposed rule should it pass. Uber has a history of pulling out of locations when rules change that aren't in its favor, but it's hard to imagine the company leaving NYC.