uRegulators Proposes Changes To 5-Star Safety Ratings To Incorporate More Crash-Prevention Technologyr

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• Crash safety tests are about to get a whole lot different. Automakers striving to achieve five stars for safety from federal regulators will have to add a few things to their vehicle rosters as the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration announced high-tech changes to its system. 

  NHTSA announced on Tuesday that it would bring its 5-Star Safety ratings into a new era of safety by adding additional crash tests, using new and more human-like crash test dummies, rating crash-avoidance advanced technologies, and assessing pedestrian protection.

  The proposed changes [PDF] aim to give consumers better information to help choose a safe vehicle, while encouraging manufacturers to produce vehicles with more crash protection and new technology innovations that will save lives.

  “NHTSA’s 5-Star Safety Ratings have set the bar on safety since it began in 1978, and today we are raising that bar,” U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx said in a statement. “The changes provide more and better information to new-vehicle shoppers that will help accelerate the technology innovations that saves lives.”

  The 5-Star Safety Ratings, also known as the New Car Assessment Program, crash-tests new vehicles every year and currently rates them on how well they protect occupants in frontal, side and rollover crashes.

  Results of the tests are then placed into a rating of one to five stars, with more stars indicating a safer car. The ratings appear on wind stickers for new vehicles and are searchable on safercar.gov.

  Under the overhauled standards, which won’t take effect until vehicles in model year 2019, NHTSA would rate automakers based on whether or not they add systems for forward collision warning, lane departure warning, blind-spot detection, lower beam head lighting, semi-automatic headlamp beam switching, amber rear turn signals, rear automatic braking and pedestrian automatic emergency braking.

  In all, the changes include:
  • A new 5-Star Safety Ratings system, which will, for the first time, encompass assessment of crash-avoidance and advanced technologies as well as pedestrian protection;

  • New tests to assess how well vehicles protect pedestrians from head, leg and pelvic injuries that occur when a pedestrian is struck by a vehicle;

  • A new frontal oblique crash test that measures how well vehicles protect occupants in an angled frontal crash;

  • An improved full frontal barrier crash test to drive safety improvements for rear seat occupants;

  • New crash test dummies, including the Test device for Human Occupant Restraint, (THOR) and WorldSID, that will provide vastly improved data on the effects a crash is likely to have on the human body;

  • An assessment of additional crash-avoidance and advanced technologies that offer drivers the most potential for avoiding or mitigating crashes;

  • Use of half-star increments to provide consumers more discriminating information about vehicle safety performance; and

  • The ability to dynamically update the program more swiftly as new safety technologies emerge.

  Lawmakers were quick to applaud the proposed changes, saying the new system was a win for both consumers and innovators.

  “Consumers trust auto window-sticker safety ratings when they compare vehicles, and incorporating features like collision warning and automative emergency braking will tell consumer how safe their vehicles really are,” Massachusetts senator Edward Markey said in a statement [PDF].

  Consumer advocates called the proposal a big step to ensure that new vehicles are safe.

  “These updates will create a powerful incentive for automakers to make the latest life-saving technologies available on more vehicles more quickly, and that’s great news for consumers,” William Wallace, policy analyst for our colleagues at Consumers Union, said in a statement. “We applaud NHTSA for today’s announcement and look forward to working with the agency to help put this plan into action as soon as possible.”

  NHTSA will collect public comment on the changes for 60 days, with final notice of the planned changes expected to be complete by the end of 2016.

  
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by Ashlee Kieler via Consumerist

uSales Of Audiobooks Are Gaining On Print Booksr

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• 
  While rising prices are causing sales of e-books to slump, there’s another, somewhat unlikely challenger to the traditional print book throne: audiobooks, formerly known on family road trips as “books on tape,” have been outselling paper copies much of the time.

  Jeremy Olshan over at MarketWatch was stumped as to why audiobooks are suddenly proving so popular: it’s the fastest-growing segment of the book publishing industry, according to the Audio Publishers Association, even though text is still on top.

  According to Amazon’s audiobook subsidiary Audible, which wouldn’t disclose exact sales figures across formats to Olshan, the company found examples of books in every genre that sell better in the audio format than written words, in some cases, four times as well.

  Why are they garnering new fans? One reason, Olshan posits, is celebrity narrators, both mainstream celebrities — like Jake Gyllenhaal and Tim Robbins — as well as folks who have narrated other popular books in the past.

  Olshan gives the example of Andrew Peterson, who used his own money to hire his favorite audiobook narrator Dick Hill, who may be best known as the voice of Jack Reacher in Lee Child’s best-selling series, to provide the track for the audio version of his debut novel, First to Kill.

  “If you liked Jack Reacher, the main character in this book reminds me of him,” one commenter said on Audible’s site, referring to Peterson’s book. “I have listened to many Dick Hill narrations. In fact, searching by his name is how I discovered Andrew Peterson,” another added.

  Peterson’s series proved to be four times as popular in the audiobook format as it was in the print version.

  On the other hand, there are some folks who probably don’t care about the narrator. For them, it could just be a personal preference to learn or consume by listening, instead of reading.

  Audiobooks have begun to outsell print [MarketWatch]

  
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by Mary Beth Quirk via Consumerist

uAnheuser-Busch CEO Tells Congress That Mega-Beer Merger Is Good For Everyone, Reallyr

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• 

  Executives involved in the billion-dollar beer merger between Anheuser-Busch and SABMiller tried to paint a rosy picture of its impending marriage — despite a wealth of contradictory testimony — assuring lawmakers that there’s really no downside to the deal: everyone will benefit, even consumers. 

  InBev CEO Carlos Brito told [PDF] members of the Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on Tuesday that the company’s $107 billion deal to buy SABMiller and sell the MillerCoors brand to Molson Coors for $12 billion is all about increasing competition, not lining the beer giants’ wallets.

  “The purpose of this transaction is to enhance our ability to serve new markets, particularly in Africa, Asia and Central and South America,” Brito said during the hearing. “If anything, our divestiture of SABMiller’s interest in MillerCoors will create an even more competitive marketplace, building upon what is already a golden age of consumer choice in American brewing.”

  To illustrate what he means, Brito opined about how the deal would barely touch the U.S. marketplace, at least when it came to his company’s big beer – Budweiser – noting that the brand’s sales position wouldn’t change.

  Despite Brito’s repeated assertions that the deal isn’t meant to bench craft brewers, that “the beer market has never been so competitive and so open,” he and his counterpart from Molson Coors faced tough opposition from lawmakers and the craft industry.

  Senator Richard Blumenthal, of Massachusetts, questioned the industry’s consolidation over the past several years – including purchases by InBev of small craft brewers and distribution companies.

  “Through the eyes of consumers, the result has been higher prices,” Blumenthal said. “These megamergers may have been good for shareholders, but not so much for beer drinkers.”

  Molson Coors CEO Mark Hunter tried to placate those concerns [PDF], noting that the company only owns one distributor and has no intention of buying others.

  “It will not change consumer choice, it will not change the competitive pricing environment, it will not change our market share…and it will not change the explosive growth of craft brewers or their access to the market through the MillerCoors distributor network,” he said.

  Brito echoed the sentiments, claiming that the companies’ “small role… has not stood in the way of craft’s remarkable growth. In fact, several of our owned and operated beer distributorships are in markets that are home to some of the country’s most successful craft brewers.”

  That reassurance wasn’t exactly met with applause, as Senator Chris Coons, of Delaware, poignantly noted that “nobody wants to take a seat at a bar and discover their only choices are between a Bud and a Miller,” he said.

  Bob Pease, CEO of the Brewers Association, contradicted Brito and Hunter’s testimony, noting in his own testimony [PDF] that the big beer makers have incredible influence over U.S. wholesalers, giving it a competitive edge that would only grow if they combined forces.

  “In communities where ABI or a closely related wholesaler is one of two choices for a brewer to access the retail market, the wholesale tier is simply not competitive,” he said. “Over the last several months, ABI demonstrated its ability to expand control of the wholesale tier by leveraging its company-owned wholesalers and relationships with favored wholesalers.”

  The distribution of beer in the U.S. has been a point of concern for many antitrust experts.

  Diana Moss, president of the American Antitrust Institute, who also testified [PDF] at the hearing, told Consumerist earlier this year that it’s possible the underlying reason for the merger hinges on control of more distribution centers.

  “It’s not about the 70% market share of production,” Moss says. “They want the global market, but in the U.S. they want distribution. That is the pipeline to getting the consumer and a lot of craft brewers use the Miller distribution centers to get to shelves.”

  It’s this motivation – to control the arm of the beer business that essentially provides consumers with choice – that worries Moss.

  “A merged ABI-SABMiller would be a more powerful ‘gatekeeper’ of the critical distribution channels that craft brewers need to get their products onto retail shelves, jeopardizing the choice, variety, and innovation that consumers benefit from,” she says.

  While the Senate subcommittee has no power to block the merger between the beer companies, members of Congress have previously asked Attorney General Loretta Lynch to investigate the merger’s impact on craft brewers, specifically whether or not the deal would push them out of the beer market.

  “Large multinational brewers should not be allowed to use their market power to limit consumer choice and access to small innovative breweries,” Delaware Senator Chris Coons and Sens. Angus King, of Maine, Jeff Merkley, of Oregon, Susan Collins, of Maine, and Richard Blumenthal, of Connecticut, wrote in a letter to Lynch. “Put simply, we believe craft brewers must be able to conduct their business without being denied access to necessary raw materials and distribution companies.”

  [via Bloomberg]

  
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by Ashlee Kieler via Consumerist

uSurvey: Retailers Should Work To Be On Customer Service “Nice List” Year-Round, Or Risk Turning Off Shoppersr

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• 
  If retailers think they can be naughty all year when it comes to customer service, only to take their smiles out of storage and dust’em off when the holidays roll around, they’ve got another think coming, according to a recent survey that says customers can be very unforgiving.

  A survey of shoppers by Aspect, a company that deals in customer experience programs for brands, found that while the holidays are the biggest shopping season of the year, bad customer service, long lines and other decidedly un-fun experiences can turn off shoppers any time of the year.

  And by the time the holidays roll around, they might not even want to deal with those retailers: more than 50% of respondents said they stopped doing business with retailers due to poor service. Close behind? Telecom and cable companies (again, color us shocked) and travel companies:

  

  In addition, more than 50% of those polled said that bad customer service during the high shopping season is a reason to get Grinchy. Maybe it’s because we’re already jaded — about a third of consumers said they lower their customer service expectations during the holidays.

  What does this all mean? It’s pretty simple: beefing up customer service protocols and thereby pleasing your customers during the course of the year could reap big rewards when it comes time for the holiday shopping season.

  
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by Mary Beth Quirk via Consumerist

uChipotle Temporarily Closes Boston College Location To Investigate After Nearly 30 Students Become Illr

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• 

  Chipotle’s nine-state E. coli outbreak may be expanding once again: health officials are looking into a connection between the ongoing contamination and a Boston College location after more than two dozen students reported becoming sick after eating at the chain restaurant. 

  The university notified the Massachusetts Department of Health that 30 students presented gastrointestinal symptoms and investigators are working to determine the cause of the illnesses, CNN reports (warning: links has video that auto plays).

  Chipotle says that while it’s unsure the student illnesses are connected to the ongoing E. coli outbreak in Washington, Oregon, California, Minnesota, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Illinois, New York and Ohio, it has temporarily closed the location in Boston where the sick students ate while health officials look for a cause.

  “We do not have any evidence to suggest that this incident is related (to) the previous E. coli incident. There are no confirmed cases of E. coli connected to Chipotle in Massachusetts,” the company said in a statement.

  On Friday, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention expanded the outbreak from six states to nine; adding Pennsylvania, Maryland and Illinois.

  In addition to reporting one illness in each of the new states, the CDC said it is aware of four more cases in Ohio (2), Washington (1), and California (1).

  To date, 47 of 52 people interviewed about their illness reported eating at a Chipotle restaurant in the week before they got sick.

  The CDC warned at the time that even more illnesses could be added to the outbreak list, as those that occurred after Nov. 11 might not be reported yet due to the time it takes between when person becomes ill and when the illness is reported — which can take an average of two to three weeks.

  “CDC and state and local public health partners are continuing laboratory surveillance through PulseNet to identify additional ill people and to interview them,” the agency said.

  Boston College says students sick after eating at Chipotle [CNN]

  
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by Ashlee Kieler via Consumerist

uRedbox President Steps Down As DVD Kiosk Business Struggles (Yes, Redbox Still Exists)r

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• 
  Let’s get one thing out of the way before we start: yes, Redbox still exists. But because many folks would rather get instance access to a digital version of their desired flick, rather than leave the house to visit a DVD kiosk to rent a movie and then have to return it later, business is not doing so well, prompting the company’s president to fly the coop after less than two years on the job.

  In a sign that Blockbuster’s ghost may get some company haunting family movie night, president Mark Horak is stepping down, according to Redbox’s parent company Outerwall (formerly known as Coinstar). He’ll be replaced for the time being by Outerwall’s head honcho, CEO Erik Prusch, reports MarketWatch.

  Redbox has been trying to boost its struggling sales with new movie titles, the addition of video games and by hiking prices last fall, but it doesn’t seem to be enough: Outerwall said Redbox’s third-quarter results were “the worst theatrical box office in Redbox kiosks in four years,” and the numbers for the current quarter show that its efforts to bring in more revenue aren’t working out so well.

  Redbox already gave up on our neighbors in the wintry north, closing down all DVD rental kiosks in Canada earlier this year.
  Netflix has put Redbox on Blockbuster’s road to destruction [MarketWatch]

  
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by Mary Beth Quirk via Consumerist

uAmazon Adding Starz, Showtime, A Bunch Of Other Tiny Streaming Services As Add-Ons To Prime Videor

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• As it was rumored, so it has now come to pass: starting today, a whole host of extra streaming channels are available for Amazon Prime subscribers to add to their plans.

  There’s still no HBO Now or Netflix available through the online retailer; most of the services available for add-on are smaller, niche platforms like QelloConcerts, Lifetime Movie Club, or Comedy Central Stand-Up Plus. The highest-profile networks available are the streaming versions of premium channels Starz and Showtime, each of which will go for $9 per month through Amazon.

  Hulu also offers Showtime for $9, but back in July Starz’s CEO said the network wasn’t interested in providing an option to non-cable-subscribers just yet. He did, however, leave open the option for the network to sign exactly this kind of online distribution deal. And clearly, the time to change that tune has come.

  This is good news for those of us who perhaps only got through the first half of Outlander‘s first season during the last time we had access to Starz, and now can finally take a day off to finish the binge. Such as.

  [via Re/Code]

  
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by Kate Cox via Consumerist