uAMC, Regal Theater Chains Targeted In Antitrust Inquiryr

4 4 4 9

• 

  (camknows)
  (Nicholas Eckhart)

  Exclusive agreements between large movie theater chains and film studios that are effectively used to prevent independent rivals from showing certain films have caught the watchful eye of the Department of Justice’s Antitrust Division, with investigators now requesting information about the increasingly popular tactic from two of the nation’s largest cinema operators, AMC Entertainment and Regal Entertainment.

  The Wall Street Journal reports that both AMC and Regal received formal inquiries from antitrust investigators seeking information regarding so-called clearance agreements.

  The two revealed they had recently received Civil Investigative Demands from the DOJ seeking documents and answers concerning “potentially anticompetitive conduct” through filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

  Shortly after receiving the requests for information from the DOJ, AMC and Regal received a similar inquiry regarding possible violations of antitrust laws through use of clearance agreements from the office of the attorney general of Ohio.

  The agreements, most common among large chains, limit the number of theaters allowed to screen certain movies in some locations, essentially keeping potential blockbuster films out of smaller competitors’ reach.

  All three major U.S. theater chains – AMC, Regal and Cinemark – have previously said that clearance agreements are a long-established industry practice that only affect a small number of locations. Additionally, they say the requests are only approved at the discretion of movie studios.

  However, those opposed to the practice maintain that the contracts allow larger chains to flex their muscle and exert their substantial market power in order to drive new, smaller competitors out of the industry.

  In addition to information about the clearance agreements, the DOJ is reportedly looking into certain joint ventures that AMC participates in.

  “We do not believe the company has violated federal or state antitrust laws and are cooperating with the relevant governmental authorities,” AMC said in the SEC notice.

  A previous filing from Regal detailed how the company was asked by the DOJ to “preserve all documents and information since January 1, 2011 relating to movie clearances or communications or cooperation” between the company an its rivals, AMC and Cinemark.

  “We do not believe that any DOJ or state attorney general investigation of movie clearances or any communications or cooperation involving the company and AMC or Cinemark will produce evidence that the company has engaged in any anticompetitive conduct in volition of federal or state antitrust or competition laws,” Regal told investors in its filing.

  According to the WSJ, the government’s scrutiny over clearance agreements began after a separate investigation into the proposed merger between two in-theater advertising companies, Screenvision LLC and National CineMeida Inc. – which counts Regal, AMC and Cinemark as majority owners.

  That deal was eventually scrapped, but not before investigators saw a connection between an uptick in clearance agreements and the rise in theater construction.

  U.S. Scrutinizes Conduct of Movie Theaters [The Wall Street Journal]

  
• 
  

ribbi

by Ashlee Kieler via Consumerist

uClass Action Suit Against Hollister For Canceling Promo Gift Cards Goes Forwardr

4 4 4 9

• 

  (JessyeAnne)

  While class action lawsuits can be a useful method of consumer justice, they are not a swift one. Take a class action against the clothing store Hollister, which is owned by Abercrombie & Fitch: a customer accuses the store of making promotional gift cards expire even though there was no expiration date printed on the cards. It was just certified as a class action last month, and the promotion in question happened in 2009.

  Here’s how the promotion worked: customers who spent $75 or more received a $25 gift card. This card had no expiration date printed on it, but Hollister voided all of the cards issued for this promotion on January 30, 2010. How did they notify consumers? Well, they e-mailed people whose e-mail addresses were on file, and the company claims that they put the expiration date on signs in stores, and that they e-mailed customers whose e-mail addresses were on file.

  That’s no excuse, the judges of an appeals court in New Jersey have declared. The man seeking to turn this case into a class action brought his then-expired gift card to a Hollister store in 2011. Hollister admits that there were $3 million in outstanding gift card balances canceled, or as many as 120,000 individual shoppers who took advantage of this deal and lost 25 bucks. “Had defendant obtained the identities of consumers when giving out $25 gift cards, the problems it now offers as grounds for upending certification would not exist,” wrote one of the judges.

  Hollister Gift Card Class Action Advances in NJ [Courthouse News]

  
• 
  

ribbi

by Laura Northrup via Consumerist

uNestlé USA Cutting Artificial Flavors, Reducing Salt In Some Frozen Pizza Productsr

4 4 4 9

• 

  Digiorno is one of the brands included. (JeepersMedia)

  Following Nestlé USA’s announcement that it would be pulling artificial flavors from all its chocolate products earlier this year, the company now says it’s removing artificial flavors and reducing salt by 10% in many of its frozen pizza and snack products by the end of 205.

  That will include more than 250 products under brands like Digiorno, Tombstone, California Pizza Kitchen, Jack’s, Hot Pocket and Lean Pockets, Nestlé says.

  By the end of 2015, there will be no more artificial flavors in any product within those brands — with upcoming products included — and sodium will be down 10% compared to 2013 levels in those pizza and snack brands.

  The company will also encourage you not to eat the entire box of Hot Pockets in one sitting even if that’s what you feel like doing because it’s been a really tough week, by including “incorporated guidance tools on packaging” to help educate consumers on “choosing appropriate portion sizes and the importance of eating vegetables and fruits as part of a balanced plate.”

  “We know people want to feel good about the foods they eat, and they’re seeking foods made with fewer artificial ingredients and less sodium,” said John Carmichael, president of the Nestlé Pizza & Snacking Division, Nestlé USA. “As one of the nation’s largest food companies, Nestlé is listening to consumers and delivering on their desire for convenient, great-tasting foods that have an improved nutritional profile.”

  Nestle is joining a slew of other food companies to recently announce a shift toward a future free from artificial flavors amid consumer demand, including Taco Bell and Pizza Hut, Panera Bread and Kraft Macaroni & Cheese.

  
• 
  

ribbi

by Mary Beth Quirk via Consumerist

uNestlé USA Cutting Artificial Flavors, Reducing Salt In Some Frozen Pizza Productsr

4 4 4 9

• 

  Digiorno is one of the brands included. (JeepersMedia)

  Following Nestlé USA’s announcement that it would be pulling artificial flavors from all its chocolate products earlier this year, the company now says it’s removing artificial flavors and reducing salt by 10% in many of its frozen pizza and snack products by the end of 205.

  That will include more than 250 products under brands like Digiorno, Tombstone, California Pizza Kitchen, Jack’s, Hot Pocket and Lean Pockets, Nestlé says.

  By the end of 2015, there will be no more artificial flavors in any product within those brands — with upcoming products included — and sodium will be down 10% compared to 2013 levels in those pizza and snack brands.

  The company will also encourage you not to eat the entire box of Hot Pockets in one sitting even if that’s what you feel like doing because it’s been a really tough week, by including “incorporated guidance tools on packaging” to help educate consumers on “choosing appropriate portion sizes and the importance of eating vegetables and fruits as part of a balanced plate.”

  “We know people want to feel good about the foods they eat, and they’re seeking foods made with fewer artificial ingredients and less sodium,” said John Carmichael, president of the Nestlé Pizza & Snacking Division, Nestlé USA. “As one of the nation’s largest food companies, Nestlé is listening to consumers and delivering on their desire for convenient, great-tasting foods that have an improved nutritional profile.”

  Nestle is joining a slew of other food companies to recently announce a shift toward a future free from artificial flavors amid consumer demand, including Taco Bell and Pizza Hut, Panera Bread and Kraft Macaroni & Cheese.

  
• 
  

ribbi

by Mary Beth Quirk via Consumerist

uGameStop, Not Hot Topic, To Acquire ThinkGeek For $140 Millionr

4 4 4 9

• 
  Remember the long, long-ago of, er, just last week when we thought Hot Topic was planning to buy the parent company of online specialty retailer ThinkGeek? Well, now they’re not. A mysterious new suitor showed up just a few days later, and it appears they have the better bid. And so, Geeknet today announced that their brief fling with Hot Topic is over, and they will be joining up with GameStop instead.

  That’s the news from Geeknet this morning. Geeknet CEO Kathryn McCarthy said of the deal, “Our Board and management team believe this transaction is in the best interest of Geeknet and its stockholders.” She continued, “As a part of GameStop’s family of brands, Geeknet will be well-positioned to achieve our goals of increasing our brand awareness and expanding our product offerings.”

  GameStop CEO Paul Raines had an equally bland statement to offer, saying, “This acquisition creates value to all stakeholders involved. The addition of Geeknet is an important expansion of our global multichannel platform and we are excited to leverage their product development expertise to broaden our product offering in the fast-growing collectibles category and deepen relationships with our existing customer base.”

  Both Hot Topic and GameStop have overlapping interests with ThinkGeek’s target audience. The former sells lines of licensed apparel and accessories that dovetail with ThinkGeek’s offerings. The latter still primarily sells games and consoles — though for how much longer, who can say — to an audience who are also likely to be interested in related paraphernalia from ThinkGeek.

  
• 
  

ribbi

by Kate Cox via Consumerist

uWalmart Raising Hourly Wages For 100,000 Specialty Department Employeesr

4 4 4 9

• 

  (Mike Mozart)

  Four months after Walmart began raising wages for around 40% of its workers, the nation’s largest retailer is announcing another round of pay increases affecting around 100,000 additional employees.

  Reuters reports that Walmart will begin raising the wages for workers and managers of certain departments starting next month, covering a small portion of the company’s estimated 1.3 million employees.

  The changes in pay range from increase of a $1 to $3, depending on the service department and type of employee.

  For example, the current hourly pay for managers in electronics and auto care ranges from $10-$20. After the wage increases, that range will be more like $13-$24.50/hour.

  Managers in departments like clothing and consumer products will see less dramatic increases, taking their hourly pay from the current range of $9.90-$19.31 to $10.90-$20.71.

  Wage increases for deli section managers are also coming, but the bump in pay will be less than $1/hour, according to Reuters’ numbers.

  In addition to the new hourly increases, Walmart announced it will start paying store associates 10% more per hour when they get promoted, representing about a 40-cent increase on average. That change is expected to begin in mid-August, a company spokesperson tells Reuters.

  The most recent wage news from Walmart comes just four months after the company unveiled plans to give nearly 40% of its 1.3 million employees pay increases over the next year.

  At that time, the retailer also began testing a new program that would offer workers fixed schedules; meaning they would work the same hours each week.

  For the past several years, Walmart has come under scrutiny by labor advocates, unions and employees who claim the company underpays workers. The retailer has maintained that the average full-time hourly wage is $12.92, but critics said the figure doesn’t take into consideration the many employees who are not considered full-time because the company has reduced the number of hours they work each week.

  Thousands of workers and advocacy groups have protested the retail giant in recent months for its continuous low pay and working conditions.

  In late December, the company announced that in order to be in compliance with more than two dozen state’s minimum wage laws, it would increase the pay for 1/3 of its workers during 2015.

  Wal-Mart to raise wages for 100,000 U.S. workers in some departments [Reuters]

  
• 
  

ribbi

by Ashlee Kieler via Consumerist

uTime Warner Cable Has Lowest Customer Satisfaction Score Of All U.S. Companies, Not Just Cable Providersr

4 4 4 9

• 

  (Lyman Green)

  In news that backs up the results of a recent Consumer Reports survey, Time Warner Cable’s pay-TV service is not just dead last on the American Customer Satisfaction Index’s rankings of cable companies, but of all companies in the entire Index.

  TWC managed to score a ridiculously bad 51 out of 100 on the ACSI for its pay-TV service (the Index scores cable companies’ pay-TV, broadband, and phone services separately), tying it with survey newcomer Mediacom for the worst rating thus far in 2015. Mediacom was also a bottom-of-the-barrel performer in the CR survey.

  This is a repeat of sorts for TWC, which saw its Internet service receive the worst overall ACSI score (54) in 2014, while its pay-TV score of 56 was the second-lowest.

  While TWC’s broadband score improved slightly to a subpar 58, the score for Comcast’s Xfinity service slipped a point to 56, putting it at the back of the pack for all ISPs this year.

  TWC’s latest merger partner, Charter, also failed to fare well, scoring a miserable 57 for broadband and just meeting the industry average of 63 for its pay-TV service.

  On the plus side of things, both AT&T and Verizon FiOS received above average scores for pay-TV and Internet access. AT&T topped the broadband ratings with a score of 69, while FiOS dropped three points to 68, falling out of the leadership spot it held for the previous two years.

  As a whole, this sector continues to bring up the rear of all industries on the ACSI. In 2014, its average score of 71 only beat out Public Administration/Government, and it looks like we might be in for a repeat of that ranking this year with the overall sector average dropping to 69.

  “There was a time when pay TV could get away with discontented users without being penalized by revenue losses from defecting customers, but those days are over,” says Claes Fornell, ACSI Chairman and founder. “Today people have more alternatives than ever before. Consumer abandonment of pay TV is shaking up the industry and lower satisfaction could mean even more cord cutting by subscribers ahead.”

  
• 
  

ribbi

by Chris Morran via Consumerist