Business

The Associated Press reports: Hollywood’s theatrical business may be slowly rebounding but for some exhibitors the last year has been catastrophic. Pacific Theaters, which operates some 300 screens in California, including the beloved ArcLight theaters and the historic Cinerama Dome in Hollywood, said Monday that it will not be reopening. “This was not the outcome anyone wanted, but despite a …

Bloomberg News reports: The company is working on a product that would combine an Apple TV set-top box with a HomePod speaker and include a camera for video conferencing through a connected TV and other smart-home functions, according to people familiar with the matter, who asked not to be identified discussing internal matters. The device’s other capabilities would include standard …

Tampa’s Fox News affiliate reports: Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is optimistic that cruises can resume by mid-summer, as operators struggle to stay afloat one year after sailing was shut down due to coronavirus concerns. “Well, the bottom line is safety… I can’t wait for us all to be on the move …

The New York Times reports: Will Smith and the director Antoine Fuqua said on Monday that they were pulling their upcoming film production “Emancipation” out of Georgia because of the state’s new voting law, which has been denounced by activists as an effort to make voting harder for the state’s Black population. The slavery-era drama, which is being produced and …

New York Upstate reports: The statewide 11 p.m. curfew for bars and restaurants serving alcohol has been extended until May 6, despite the recent relaxing of other Covid-19 restrictions. Gov. Andrew Cuomo included the 11 p.m. closing time in a series of extensions to Covid-related executive orders that had been set to expire on Tuesday (April 6). In addition to …

CBS News reports: Amazon has beaten back a historic effort by workers to form a collective bargaining unit in a warehouse in Bessemer, Alabama, with about two-thirds of ballots cast in the union election voting against joining the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union, according to a tally by the National Labor Relations Board. The final tally showed 1,798 votes …

Gothamist reports: Restaurants and shops that fell behind on their rent and other expenses during the COVID-19 pandemic will soon be able to apply for additional grants. New York’s new state budget includes $800 million in direct cash assistance for small businesses. State Assemblyman Harvey Epstein [photo] of Manhattan, who had been lobbying for the aid, said the package sets …

From Sen. Rand Paul’s interview with Breitbart: “If they want to boycott us, why don’t we boycott them? This is the only thing that will teach them a lesson. If Coca-Cola wants to only operate in Democrat states and wants only Democrats to drink Coca-Cola, God love them.” “We will see how well they do when half of the country …

Ars Technica reports: Yahoo Answers is shutting down on May 4, 2021, the Verizon-owned Yahoo announced this week. The 16-year-old question-and-answer service will enter read-only mode on April 20, preventing users from posting new questions or answering other users’ questions, Yahoo said.  The shutdown announcement prompted anger from people asking if Yahoo Answers is being “shut to silence conservatives” and …

Via press release from Amazon: Amazon founder and CEO shares a statement in support of investment in American infrastructure. “We support the Biden Administration’s focus on making bold investments in American infrastructure. Both Democrats and Republicans have supported infrastructure in the past, and it’s the right time to work together to make this happen. “We recognize this investment will require …

The Wall Street Journal reports: Supply chain problems are reaching into a far corner of the business universe: Ketchup packets. After enduring a year of closures, employee safety fears and start-stop openings, many American restaurants are now facing a nationwide ketchup shortage. Restaurants are trying to secure the tabletop staple after Covid-19 upended the condiment world order. Managers are using …

“We have a moral code of conduct at our office. I fire people if they have extramarital affairs. The hilarious thing is I put that on Twitter and people go, ‘Won’t you get sued for that?’ “Uh, no, you’re allowed to discriminate against infidelity. I’ve got a right to tell my employees whatever I want to tell them. They freaking …

From the far-right Moonie Times: A number of Georgia Republicans are pushing the unthinkable — kicking Coca-Cola out of state legislative offices over its criticism of Georgia’s new voting rules. In a letter to Coca-Cola that reporters posted to social media, eight members of the House of Representatives declared their offices Coke-free zones and demanded that the Atlanta-based soda behemoth …

CNN reports: The UK government says it plans to trial Covid-19 passports at snooker tournaments, comedy clubs and soccer matches over the coming weeks. As the country reopens, ministers hope the “covid-status certification” system will allow those who are vaccinated, have had a recent negative test or a positive test within six months to return to theaters, football matches, cinemas …

The Washington Post reports: Nearly 200 companies on Friday joined in a strong statement against proposals that threaten to restrict voting access in dozens of states, in a further sign of corporate willingness to speak out on social justice issues. As Major League Baseball announced that it will be moving this summer’s All-Star Game out of Atlanta in response to …

Reuters reports: Amazon.com Inc has apologized to U.S. Representative Mark Pocan, admitting to scoring an “own goal” in its initial denial of his suggestion that its drivers were sometimes forced to urinate in bottles during their delivery rounds. “We know that drivers can and do have trouble finding restrooms because of traffic or sometimes rural routes, and this has been …

Via press release from American Airlines: Earlier this morning, the Texas State Senate passed legislation with provisions that limit voting access. To make American’s stance clear: We are strongly opposed to this bill and others like it. As a Texas-based business, we must stand up for the rights of our team members and customers who call Texas home, and honor …

Forbes reports: Georgia Republicans voted to strip Delta Air Lines of a jet fuel tax break worth tens of millions of dollars Wednesday after the company u-turned to unequivocally condemn the state’s widely-criticized voting restrictions, joining a growing list of executives who have criticized the new restrictions amid a debate over boycotting Georgia’s biggest companies. The state Senate did not …

Atlanta’s ABC News affiliate reports: In a memo obtained by Channel 2 Action News and ABC News, Delta CEO Ed Bastian called Georgia’s new election laws “unacceptable” and “based on a lie.” It is the strongest statement that the Atlanta-based company has released regarding its opposition to the election overhaul. Delta’s initial response to the bill did not make a …

Reuters reports: With the 400-metre-long (430-yard) Ever Given dislodged, 113 ships were expected to transit the canal in both directions by early Tuesday morning, Suez Canal Authority (SCA) chairman Osama Rabie told reporters. He said a backlog of 422 ships could be cleared in 3 -1/2 days. The Ever Given had become jammed diagonally across a southern section of the …