Business

Telecoms Sue To Block FTC’s “Click To Cancel” Rule

Reuters reports: An industry group representing cable and internet providers sued along with two others on Wednesday to block a U.S. Federal Trade Commission rule that requires companies to offer simple cancellation mechanisms for subscriptions. NCTA – The Internet & Television Association and groups representing the home security and online advertising industries said in papers filed with the 5th U.S. …

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McDonald’s “Confident” Food Is Now Free Of E. Coli

NBC News reports: The president of McDonald’s USA said Wednesday that the company can “restore confidence” as it seeks to minimize the damage from an E. coli outbreak linked to the chain’s Quarter Pounders in multiple states. “We are very confident that you can go to McDonald’s and enjoy our classics. We took swift action yesterday to remove the Quarter …

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American Airlines Fined $50M Over Disability Laws

NBC News reports: The U.S. Department of Transportation on Wednesday announced a $50 million fine against American Airlines for its alleged mistreatment of passengers with disabilities, which the department said in some cases caused injuries. The fine is 25 times larger than the any other fine by the department for disability related violations, Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said in a …

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NYT: Bill Gates Gave $50M To Group Backing Harris

The New York Times reports: After decades of sitting on the sidelines of politics, Bill Gates, one of the richest people in the world, has said privately that he recently donated about $50 million to a nonprofit organization that is supporting Vice President Kamala Harris’s presidential run, according to three people briefed on the matter. The donation was meant to …

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CDC: McDonald’s E. Coli Outbreak Kills One, 49 Sick

USA Today reports: The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced Tuesday that multiple agencies are investigating an E. coli outbreak linked to Quarter Pounder burgers at McDonald’s. The agency said there have been at least 49 people sickened across 10 states, with 10 people requiring hospitalization and one death. The majority of illnesses have been reported in Colorado and …

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Former Abercrombie CEO Charged With Sex Trafficking

CNBC reports: Former Abercrombie & Fitch CEO Mike Jeffries was arrested in Florida and faces sex trafficking-related charges, a spokesman for federal prosecutors in the Eastern District of New York told CNBC on Tuesday. Two of Jeffries’ associates, Matthew Smith of West Palm Beach, Florida, and James Jacobson of Wisconsin, have also been charged. The criminal case comes a year …

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Jury Awards Airline $9.4M In “Skiplagging” Lawsuit

Courthouse News reports: A Texas federal jury awarded American Airlines $9.4 million on Tuesday from a travel website behind the controversial “skiplagging” hack of booking cheaper tickets to a connecting city and then abandoning the subsequent flight on the ticket to a final destination. Jurors deliberated for several hours after five days of trial before U.S. District Judge Mark Pittman …

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“Blade Runner” Producers Sue Musk Over AI Images

The Hollywood Reporter reports: A production company for Blade Runner 2049 has sued Tesla, which allegedly fed images from the movie into an artificial intelligence image generator to create unlicensed promotional materials. Alcon Entertainment, in a lawsuit filed Monday in California federal court, accuses Elon Musk and his autonomous vehicle company of misappropriating the movie’s brand to promote its robotaxi …

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Bloomberg: TGI Friday’s Is Prepping For Bankruptcy

Bloomberg News reports: TGI Friday’s Inc. is seeking financing as the casual-dining chain prepares to file for bankruptcy protection in coming weeks, according to people with knowledge of its plans, after struggling to turn around a business pressured by customers’ tighter budgets and preference for faster food. The company is huddling with lenders in search of a loan that would …

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NYT Calls Out Elon Musk’s Many Conflicts Of Interest

The New York Times reports: Mr. Musk’s rocket company, SpaceX, effectively dictates NASA’s rocket launch schedule. The Defense Department relies on him to get most of its satellites to orbit. His companies were promised $3 billion across nearly 100 different contracts last year with 17 federal agencies. His entanglements with federal regulators are also numerous and adversarial. His companies have …

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SpaceX Wins $733 Million In New Pentagon Contracts

Ars Technica reports: The US Space Force’s Space Systems Command announced Friday it has ordered nine launches from SpaceX in the first batch of dozens of missions the military will buy in a new phase of competition for lucrative national security launch contracts. The nine launches are divided into two fixed-price “task orders” that Space System Command opened up for …

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Feds Investigate Tesla’s “Full Self-Driving” System

The Associated Press reports: The U.S. government’s road safety agency is investigating Tesla’s “Full Self-Driving” system after getting reports of crashes in low-visibility conditions, including one that killed a pedestrian. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration says in documents that it opened the probe on Thursday after the company reported four crashes when Teslas encountered sun glare, fog and airborne …

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Walgreens To Shutter 1200 Stores Over Three Years

NBC News reports: Walgreens said Tuesday it plans to close 1,200 stores over the next three years as it seeks to further downsize its footprint amid flagging sales and changing consumer behavior. The pharmacy chain said 500 of the closings would occur over the next 12 months. It estimates a quarter of its 8,700 stores in the U.S. are unprofitable. …

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Anti-LGBTQ Boycott Backfires In Small Ohio Town

Columbus’s NBC affiliate reports: Small business owners in Lancaster say they experienced an influx of customers after their shops were included on a social media post tying them to a debated LGBTQ+ Pride event. Brandon Love, owner of fragrance and gift store Bewilderment, told NBC4 his downtown Lancaster business is one of several that saw a boost in sales when …

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Ex-Twitter Execs Seek $200 Million In Severance

Ars Technica reports: Former Twitter executives, including former CEO Parag Agrawal, are urging a court to open discovery in a dispute over severance and other benefits they allege they were wrongfully denied after Elon Musk took over Twitter in 2022. According to the former executives, they’ve been blocked for seven months from accessing key documents proving they’re owed roughly $200 …

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GUILTY: TD Bank Fined $3 Billion For Money Laundering

The New York Times reports: TD Bank agreed to pay about $3 billion in fines to U.S. authorities and pleaded guilty on Thursday to money-laundering-related charges in a case brought by federal prosecutors, who said the Canadian bank made it “convenient” for criminals to open accounts, transfer funds and even deposit seven-figure sums of cash at its branches. The combined …

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CNBC: Spirit Airlines Exploring Bankruptcy Protection

CNBC reports: Spirit Airlines shares tumbled to a record low on Friday after a report that it’s exploring Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. The carrier faces a deadline this month to renegotiate more than $1 billion in debt. A bankruptcy filing would mark a dramatic turn for the carrier with its iconic yellow planes that caters to budget-conscious travelers. Spirit has …

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Zuck Tops Bezos As World’s Second-Richest Person

NBC News reports: Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg has surpassed Jeff Bezos as the world’s second richest person, reports CNBC. Zuckerberg’s net worth reached $206.2 billion on Thursday, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, topping the $205.1 billion net worth of the former Amazon CEO and president. The Facebook co-founder now trails Tesla chief Elon Musk by roughly $50 billion, the …

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Johnson Suggests Netanyahu Bugged His Bathroom

The Jerusalem Post reports: Former-British Prime Minister Boris Johnson claimed in his book Unleashed that he discovered a bugging device, used for listening in on private conversations, in his personal bathroom at the Foreign Office after he met with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in 2017. Johnson claimed that his security team found the device after Netanyahu had used the bathroom. …

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Dockworkers End Strike After Agreement On Wages

CNN reports: Striking members of the International Longshoremen’s Association will be back to work at the ports on Friday, the union announced Thursday evening, as the union and the management group representing shipping lines, terminal operators and port authorities have reached a tentative deal on wages. The union agreed to extend the contract it had with the United States Maritime …

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