uGM Ignition Death Toll Rises Again, Now At 90r

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  (paul bica)
  

  For more than a decade, General Motors staffers and federal regulators ignored signs of defective ignition switches in various GM vehicles. Meanwhile, hundreds of people were being hurt or killed because the car company failed to acknowledge its error.

  The latest report from the compensation fund set up to review claims of injury and death related to the defect now puts the number of approved death claims at 90, nearly seven times as many victims as the car company originally acknowledged.

  Another 163 injury claims have been approved by the fund, which doesn’t disclose amounts offered to victims or their families.

  A claimant isn’t required to accept an offer from the compensation fund, but if an offer is accepted, that claimant gives up their right to pursue any further related legal action.

  The AP reports that 118 offers have been made, and all but five of them have been accepted.

  Though the fund stopped accepting claim applications months ago, nearly one-quarter of those 4,324 claims are still under review. In some cases, this is due to incomplete documentation.

  A bankruptcy court recently ruled that GM could not face certain civil claims related to the recall. As part of the company’s 2009 bankruptcy restructuring, the “New GM” could not be held liable for all the bad behavior of the pre-bankruptcy “Old GM.”

  Even though the recall didn’t occur until 2014, the court disagreed with plaintiffs who alleged that there had been a cover up by New GM executives and that they should be held accountable for their alleged fraud.

  
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by Chris Morran via Consumerist

uVerizon FiOS Sued Over No-ESPN-Included “Custom TV” Cable Packagesr

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  (photo: Bart)

  Just about every basic cable package in the U.S. includes ESPN whether you want it or not. This is because the popular sports network’s contract generally forbids pay-TV providers from putting ESPN on a separate sports tier. But Verizon FiOS recently introduced “Custom TV,” a programming package that doesn’t necessarily include ESPN, and now the telecom giant is being sued by the sports network for breach of contract.

  This is according to a summons [PDF] for Verizon to appear in a New York state court in Manhattan.

  ESPN is alleging breach of contract and is asking the court to issue an injunction preventing FiOS from offering a base channel package that would not include ESPN. The suit also seeks unspecified damages of at least $500,000.

  A statement from the network explains that “ESPN is at the forefront of embracing innovative ways to deliver high-quality content and value to consumers on multiple platforms, but that must be done in compliance with our agreements. We simply ask that Verizon abide by the terms of our contracts.”

  At the heart of this dispute between Verizon and ESPN is the recently launched Custom TV option for FiOS. This pricing model offers a selection of base channels (which does not include ESPN) to which the subscriber can then add on separate niche-targeted bundles of 10-17 channels each. The $55/month starting price includes two of these add-on bundles at no extra charge, but each additional bundle is $10/month.

  Because ESPN is included in a sports bundle and not part of the core base for all customers, the network believes that Verizon is in violation of its contract with the network. In advance of the lawsuit, ESPN’s parent company Disney stopped airing certain FiOS commercials on ESPN and other Disney-owned channels.

  In response to the news, a rep for Verizon tells Consumerist:

  “Consumers have spoken loud and clear that they want choice, and the industry should be focused on giving consumers what they want. We are well within our rights under our agreements to offer our customers these choices.”

  
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by Chris Morran via Consumerist

uHBO CEO Brushes Off Idea Of Simultaneously Releasing All Episodes Of A Showr

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• While Netflix and Amazon may be catering to binge-watchers by releasing all episodes of their original shows online at once — and even though HBO’s online library allows users to plow through entire series of older shows — don’t expect the network to dump an entire new season of Game of Thrones or True Detective onto HBO Go or HBO Now.

  Speaking at a Washington Post event last Friday, HBO CEO Richard Plepler explained to reporter Cecelia Kang that he’s “not such a reflexive proponent of binge-watching.”

  Plepler points to the recent success of The Jinx, the six-episode documentary series about the multiple murder allegations made against wealthy Manhattan real estate scion Robert Durst.

  “I don’t think it would have been a great thing for HBO or our brand if that had been gobbled up in the first week,” explained Plepler. “I think it was very exciting for the viewer to have that mystery held out for an extended period of time.”

  The CEO added that there’s a benefit to stringing a show out over a few months.

  “There’s something very powerful about having a conversation in the culture occurring for 10 weeks, 12 weeks, 13 weeks, about your programming,” Plepler told Kang. “Occupying social media during that time, expanding the conversation about your brand for 12 weeks. You put on a show and binge it — that happens to be one way to watch it, but then it’s exhausted… I also think people enjoy the treat of waiting for the next episode.

  Plepler also accused the media of trying to be too “reductive… binary” in describing HBO Now.

  “You’re either Netflix and you’re direct to consumer or you’re stuck in the old ecosystem,” he said of this misconception. “It’s not true.”

  To him, HBO Now is “an extension of our distribution system… It is not in any way mutually exclusive.” It’s a way for current and new partners to reach millions of consumers who aren’t currently paying for HBO.

  In terms of demographics, Plepler acknowledged that HBO Go used skewed younger, but said he expects digital usage to grow among all consumers as they get their hands on it.

  “It is a very appealing product for so-called cord-cutters or cord-nevers,” said the CEO, “but our hope is: Get people into your ecosystem with a product that’s as compelling as ours and then move them into video platform.”

  Plepler didn’t provide specific numbers but did say that the launch of HBO Now “exceeded even our expectations.”

  
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by Chris Morran via Consumerist

uTaco Bell Fritos-Shell Tacos Spotted In The Wildr

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  (Taco Bell via Brand Eating)

  Back in December, fans of snack chip-flavored taco shells got an enticing hint in a presentation to shareholders in Taco Bell parent company Yum! Brands. As part of a slide showing planned innovations, a taco in a small Fritos bag was shown under the words “Revolutionizing the taco.” A Fritos-shell taco? What madness was this? The crunchy corn shells have become reality, and Taco Bell is beginning to test them.

  You’re out of luck, Fritos fans, unless you live in Memphis, Tennessee. If you do, then you can get one for $1.49, or as part of a combo box with a beverage, a Doritos Locos taco (of course), and a Burrito Supreme.

  Considering the crunchy success of Doritos Locos Tacos, it could work…but do people love Fritos as much as they love the flavor-coated tastiness of Doritos? That’s why Taco Bell is testing this line before rolling it out everywhere.

  
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by Laura Northrup via Consumerist

uFord Recalls 400,000 Vehicles Under Investigation By NHTSA For Door Latch Issuesr

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• 

  (saguarosally)

  Nearly seven months after the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration first opened an investigation into thousands of Ford vehicles that may contain malfunctioning door latches, the car manufacturer has issued a recall of nearly 400,000 sedans.

  Ford announced that it would recall 389,585 model year 2012-2014 Ford Fiesta, model year 2013-2014 Ford Fusion and Lincoln MKZ vehicles that contain door latches that may inadvertently open while the car is in motion, increasing the risk of injury.

  The recall comes less than two months after NHTSA upgraded its investigation into the malfunctioning latches to include the Fusion and Lincoln MKZ vehicles. In addition to increasing the scope of the investigation, regulators upgraded the probe to an engineering analysis – a step that can sometimes lead to a recall.

  According to Ford’s recall notice, the door latch in these vehicles may experience a broken pawl spring tab, which typically results in a condition where the door will not latch.

  The manufacturer says it is aware of allegations of soreness resulting from an unlatched door bouncing back when the customer attempted to close it, and one accident where an unlatched door swung open and struck an adjacent vehicle as the driver was pulling into a parking space.

  Prior to Ford’s recall of the vehicles, NTHSA said [PDF] it had received 207 reports related to improperly latching doors. Sixty-five of those reports claimed that the door or doors opened inadvertently while the vehicle was in motion.

  When NHTSA originally launched an investigation into the Fiesta models last September, the agency had accumulated 61 reports of potential door latch failures, of which 12 allegedly occurred while the vehicle was in motion.

  Since then, Ford has provided the agency with 451 additional reports and 1,079 warranty claims related to door latch failures.

  Ford previously said it did not believe that a latched door experiencing this condition would inadvertently unlatch and that there are many overt warnings associated with a door that does not latch.

  Still, regulators said back in March that the “rate of occurrence for this failure is comparable to other door latch failure investigations” and that the agency “questions the effectiveness of warning signals given the number of complainants alleging that the door(s) opened while the vehicle was in motion.”

  Ford Motor Company issues safety recall in North America for door latch issue on Ford Fiesta and Fusion, Lincoln MKZ [Ford]

  
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by Ashlee Kieler via Consumerist

uApple Pay Now Accepts All Major Credit Cards After Finally Adding Discoverr

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  (Philip Taylor)

  Apple Pay now supports all major U.S. credit card companies, after Discover and the payment system finally reached a deal.

  The New York Times reports the two companies reached an agreement that will let Discover cardholders make purchases at participating retailers by using the Apple Pay system on the iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus or Apple Watch.

  Apple Pay currently has deals in place with the other three major U.S. credit card issuers – Visa, MasterCard and American Express – as well as, several large banks.

  The mobile payment system allows consumers to scan and verify credit cards into the Passbook of their device so they can use those accounts without ever providing participating businesses with their card numbers.

  Starting this fall, the Times reports, Discover users will be able to pay for goods within certain apps through Apple Pay on the iPad Air 2 and iPad mini 3.

  Discover to Have Apple Pay Available for US Cardholders [New York Times]

  
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by Ashlee Kieler via Consumerist

uChipotle Says All Its Food Now GMO-Freer

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  (Mike Mozart)

  For two years, the Chipotle chain of restaurants has been labeling which of its menu items may contain genetically modified ingredients, and starting today the company says that all of its food will be GMO-free (while simultaneously acknowledging that GMOs may be completely safe).

  “The manufacturers of GMO seeds claim that GMOs are widely considered to be safe, but we don’t believe the scientific community has reached a consensus on the long-term implications of widespread GMO cultivation and consumption,” reads a statement on the Chipotle website, citing a call from 300 scientists for more independent research (i.e., not funded by companies that sell GMO seeds) to prove that these food items are safe for human consumption. “Until such studies are conducted, we believe it is prudent to take a cautious approach toward GMOs.”

  Company founder and co-CEO Steve Ells tells the NY Times that not using GMOs is more about using the best available ingredients.

  “This is another step toward the visions we have of changing the way people think about and eat fast food,” explained Ells. “Just because food is served fast doesn’t mean it has to be made with cheap raw ingredients, highly processed with preservatives and fillers and stabilizers and artificial colors and flavors.”

  According to Ells, Chipotle is able to make the GMO-free promise because its entire menu only includes 68 ingredients.

  “The vast majority of our ingredients don’t come in a G.M.O. variety, and we use lots of whole, unprocessed foods, so it was easier for us to do,” he told the Times.

  One of the most difficult parts of the menu to source without GMOs were the flour tortillas used for Chipotle burritos.

  “The shortening had an oil in it that was derived from soybeans,” said a rep for Chipotle. “We won’t use lard for tortillas because of our vegan and vegetarian customers, and we can’t use palm oil because of the environmental impact.”

  
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by Chris Morran via Consumerist