uChicago Will Have The Highest Sales Tax In The U.S. At 10.25%r

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  (Laurice Marier)

  Sales taxes are variable from place to place and very visible, and they’re visible day-to-day as we dig in our pockets for change to pay a coffee tab of $3.14. Starting next year, Chicago will have the highest sales tax in the country, with state, county and city taxes adding up to 10.25%.

  1% amounts to actual money if you’re a Cook County resident who wants to buy, say, a car. The increase will take effect on January 1, and raises the county’s sales tax levy from .75% to 1.75%.

  It’s Cook County, which includes Chicago, that’s behind the tax hike. As you might imagine, the move was controversial: one county commissioner said that he was unable to sleep the night before the vote. Representatives of local retailers and the area Chamber of Commerce made the case for not increasing the sales tax, explaining that they fear shoppers will simply travel outside the county to make purchases.

  Pastors, health care workers, county employees, and representatives of unions argued for the tax increase, which is intended to help the county deal with current and future county retiree pension costs. One commissioner proposed that the tax increase be rescinded if possible changes to county employee pensions go into effect.

  Cook County Board votes to raise sales tax [Chicago Tribune]

  
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by Laura Northrup via Consumerist

uTurboTax Will Delete Cloud Backups Of Tax Returns For Some Users On July 21r

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  (JeepersMedia)

  TurboTax tried an interesting experiment this year: some of their desktop software users were offered the opportunity to store their tax returns in the on the cloud, which could be useful in the case of hard drive failure or some other catastrophe affecting files on your computer. Those customers will have to download a copy for safekeeping: Intuit has decided to end the experiment and have desktop customers save their returns the old-fashioned way.

  That is the whole idea behind testing features, after all: if they don’t work, get rid of ’em. Only about 20% of people who file using TurboTax use desktop software: the rest file using the company’s Web-based services or mobile apps. (Yes, there are phone and tablet apps to do your taxes: some readers were surprised at this during tax season.)

  The desktop program automatically saves a copy to the computer on which it’s installed, but cloud backup was offered as an option to some customers this year. Web users’ returns are stored on Intuit’s servers as part of the service.

  TurboTax to delete tax returns for CD users who store online [CNN]

  
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by Laura Northrup via Consumerist

uNetflix Is Totally In Favor Of Charter’s Plan To Buy TWC Because It Will Save Them Some Moneyr

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• Netflix is almost 37% of all prime-time internet traffic. ISPs have been known to degrade that traffic until Netflix pays for peering. Netflix really hates having to make (and pay for) those agreements. And so Charter has quickly learned that the quickest way to Netflix’s heart is to promise not to do that.

  Netflix pledged their support for the merger in a filing with the FCC today, after Charter made their pledge in the same way. Bloomberg spotted the filings.

  In one document, Charter promised to maintain its policy of not charging for peering connections through the end of 2018. In a different but perfectly timed separate document, Netflix told the FCC that Charter’s peering policy makes the merger plan in the public interest.

  “Charter’s new peering policy is a welcome and significant departure from the efforts of some ISPs to collect access tolls on the internet,” Netflix writes. “Netflix believes that this new policy and the commitment to apply it across the ‘New Charter’ footprint is a substantial public interest benefit … Accordingly, Netflix supports the proposed Charter-Time Warner Cable transaction.”

  Netflix reached a paid peering agreement with Time Warner Cable about a year ago, sometime in the summer of 2014. The streaming video juggernaut also pays Comcast, AT&T, and Verizon for direct access to those ISPs’ customers.

  If Comcast had succeeded in its bid to buy TWC, not only would Netflix have had to keep paying up, but also Comcast would have had such nationwide leverage that the price tag on that agreement could have gone up considerably. And indeed, Netflix strenuously opposed that merger, with CEO Reed Hastings at one point saying that Comcast was out to control the whole internet.

  Of course, that plan did not work, clearing the way for Charter to try to succeed where Comcast failed.

  The FCC has opened a docket on its review of Charter’s merger plans, but has not yet set a pleading cycle for public comment.

  Netflix to Support Charter Acquisition of Time Warner Cable [Bloomberg News]

  
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by Kate Cox via Consumerist

uSpirit The Latest Airline To Suffer Delays, Cancellations Because Of Computer Glitchr

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  Courtesy of Spirit Airlines

  Customers flying Spirit Airlines to or from O’Hare International Airport in Chicago faced a few hiccups today, as the company reportedly suffered a computer glitch, which has since been fixed.

  Like several other airlines – American and United – in recent weeks, Spirit says a computer issue interfered with its ability to perform normal operations for several hours on Wednesday, The Chicago Tribune reports.

  In all, the airline says it had to cancel 16 flights in and out of O’Hare. Because of the issue, Spirit is allowing affected travelers to reschedule their flights without charge until July 22.

  A spokesperson for the company says it resumed normal operation around 1:20 p.m. (CST), but declined to provide additional information on what caused the glitch in the first place.

  “There might be some delays associated with earlier network issues, but we were able to resume operations,” spokeswoman Irisaida Mendez tells the Tribune.

  Spirit Airlines computer glitch hits O’Hare travelers [The Chicago Tribune]

  
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by Ashlee Kieler via Consumerist

uLay’s Reveals Relatively Tame “Do Us A Flavor” Potato Chip Contest Finalistsr

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• For better or worse, this is not the year of coffee-flavored potato chips: Lay’s announced its four finalists in the brand’s annual “Do Us A Flavor” contest, and all of them aren’t that far out of the snack box.

  The yearly “Do Us A Flavor” publicity stunt gives customers the chance to nominate new flavors, whittling down the entries to four finalists that then duke it out among voters. Last year’s eventual winner was Wasabi Ginger, but the real (gross) star of the show was the cappuccino flavor, which we noted tasted just like how the mall looks.

  Other runners-up included Mango Salsa and Cheddar Bacon Mac & Cheese, both delicious foods one might not necessarily think of as a flavor for chips, and instead, things you could dip chips into/crumble on top of.

  Call me jaded, but this year’s finalists seem a bit… ho-hum: “Southern Biscuits and Gravy,” “Kettle Cooked Greektown Gyro,” “New York Reuben” and “Wavy West Coast Truffle Fries.”

  All savory foods, and one flavor that is just another kind of potato product. Why not just go for “baked potato” potato chips while you’re at it?

  Voting starts July 27, and the person who came up with the winning flavor will receive $1 million, wacky or not, and have their creation distributed nationwide.

  Again, I/the Consumerist team might just not be able to feel shock anymore when it comes to snack foods. What do you think?
  

  
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by Mary Beth Quirk via Consumerist

uGoogle Begins Testing Buy Button On Select Mobile Searchesr

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• Google has finally made good on those reports that it would simplify the smartphone shopping experience by allowing users to simply hit a “buy button” to complete a transaction straight from sponsored search results, rather than toggling between retailer websites. Today, the company announced it is officially testing what it calls Purchases.

  Mashable reports that Google updated several of its mobile shopping components on Wednesday, including the new buttons – which appear as either “Buy on Google” or “Checkout” – expected to increase the company’s rivalry with other online marketplaces such as eBay and Amazon.

  Google says in a blog post that by testing Purchases on Google, it aims to help retailers boost engagement and sales through mobile devices. Currently, the company estimates that customers are two times more likely to make a purchase on a retailers’ website on a desktop computer versus a mobile device.

  The new feature works when shoppers use their mobile device to search for a product. In Google’s example, the individual is shopping for a “women’s hoodies.” When the search results appear, the shopper may see an ad that includes the “Buy on Google” or “Checkout” option.

  Once the ad has been clicked on, the consumers is taken to a retailer-branded product page hosted by Google. The checkout process can then be completed with saved payment information on Google Account.

  While the entire transaction will take place on a Google page, the products will continue to be provided by and sold from actual retailers. Additionally, Google will provide customers the same option to opt into marketing programs – such as emails and discounts – that would traditionally be seen on the retailers’ website.

  The tech company says that participating retailers will only pay for a clicks on the shopping ads to the product page; clicks and interactions made on the product page are free for the retailers.

  “Although we’re still in early experiments with a limited number of retailers, we see Purchases on Google as a big step towards helping retailers drive more mobile conversions and win more customers,” the company says in its blog post.

  In addition to adding buy buttons for select search results, Google has also begun working with a select group of global retailers including eBay, Flipkart and Zalando to encourage consumers to use their shopping apps.

  Google will add “deep links to [partner] apps right in their shopping ads, driving people straight to their mobile app instead of their website.”

  Google starts testing buy button [Mashable]
  Winning the shopping micro-moments [Google]

  
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by Ashlee Kieler via Consumerist

uBest Buy Sells $200 Gift Cards For $15, Cancels Ordersr

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• Late last night, Best Buy posted what seemed like the greatest Black Friday in July deal ever: a $200 gift card for only $15. This was an obvious pricing error, but humans are humans, and people were willing to put up with an Isaac Mizrahi-designed floral gift card if it meant that they would get $185 in free money. Fortunately for Best Buy, they corrected the pricing error after only a few hours.

  As we’ve explained over and over as recently as three months ago, retailers are not legally bound to honor pricing errors, especially completely obvious ones like this. They might choose to, but are under no obligation to do so. Also, they might place a hold on your credit or debit card or even a gift card, but that does not mean that your order has been accepted.

  It’s been a tense day on the thread on the Reddit thread where news of this deal spread as people wait to find out whether their orders went through.

  Whether taking advantage of pricing errors is ethical or not is up to you, but people in the order processing department probably noticed that something was up when people started ordering fistfuls of cards. Best Buy is no stranger to disastrous (for them) deals that involve gift cards, but at least this time the transactions didn’t take place at physical stores and the gift cards were for their own stores, not other retailers.

  Best Buy Is [Update: Was] Selling $200 Gift Cards for $15 [Gizmodo]
  [Deals] Bestbuy $15 for $200 error [Gizmodo]

  
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by Laura Northrup via Consumerist