(NEW YORK) — As airlines continue to update baggage policies and everywhere from fast food chains to theme parks introduce dynamic pricing, JetBlue is combining the two business trends by introducing a new peak and off-peak payment structure for passengers.
The New York-based airline, which first increased its checked bag fees in February among competitors, again changed up its pricing to now charge $50 for the first checked bag and $70 for the second bag while traveling during peak times.
According to JetBlue’s baggage info website, the peak pricing applies to passengers paying to check a bag within 24 hours of departure and are traveling in Blue, Blue Basic, or Blue Extra fare classes within the U.S., Latin America, the Caribbean, or Canada.
The fee for a third checked bag is $135 during peak times, and $160 for a fourth or more bags.
The new pricing also applies to “peak-season” travel dates:
April 11 to April 29 June 20 to Sept. 3 Nov. 21 to Dec. 2 Dec. 19 to Jan. 6 Feb. 13 to Feb 24 April 3 to April 28
The first bag is included for free for customers flying in Blue Plus, Mint, Mosaic, or are a JetBlue Plus cardmember, regardless of whether the time is peak or off-peak.
Those flying in Blue, Blue Basic, or Blue Extra will pay $45 for the first checked bag and $60 for the second bag during off-peak hours and $50 and $70 respectively during peak times.
The airline noted that travelers can save $10 on their first two checked items when added before check-in, at least 24 hours before departure. Additionally, checked bag fees are only refundable on JetBlue if the entire booking is canceled prior to scheduled departure.
JetBlue chalked up the increase for customers as a result of higher business operating costs, such as fuel and increased wages.
Other major carriers including American Airlines, Alaska Airlines, and United Airlines have all recently made incremental price hikes on checked bags.
CBP announces new fee changes for Trusted Traveler Programs
Prices are also on the rise for travelers who utilize Global Entry or other Trusted Traveler Programs, U.S. Customs and Border Protection announced Tuesday.
The new fees going into effect on Oct. 1, for NEXUS, Global Entry, and SENTRI programs, have not been updated in more than 15 years, and “better reflecting the program costs,” according to CBP.
Global Entry fees will increase from $100 to $120.
SENTRI, which formerly had an “a la carte” fee structure, will move to a uniform fee of $120 to be collected in full when an application is submitted.
Fees for NEXUS will increase from $50 to $120 for travelers who utilize the joint program managed by CBP and Canada Border Services Agency allowing dedicated processing between the U.S. and Canada.
“As these programs have matured and expanded, updating the fee structures is critical to the continuation and management of the programs,” CBP stated.
(NEW YORK) — Trump Media & Technology Group is attempting to force two of the company’s co-founders to forfeit their shares and give up any claim to the company’s leadership.
Trump’s social media company filed the lawsuit against Wesley Moss and Andrew Litinsky — co-founders and former Apprentice contestants — in a Florida court on March 24, two days after shareholders overwhelmingly voted to approve the company’s merger.
The lawsuit alleges that Moss and Litinsky “failed spectacularly” in their leadership of Trump Media, made “reckless and wasteful decisions,” and caused “significant damage” to the company.
Trump Media asked a Florida court to force the co-founders to forfeit their shares of the company, declare that the two have no right to appoint members to the company’s board, and award damages for their breach of their fiduciary duty.
“TMTG has been forced to file this action to remedy the harm inflicted upon it by two faithless fiduciaries and a company they own — Wesley Moss, Andrew Litinsky, and [United Atlantic Ventures] — and to halt their ongoing attempts to do even more damage,” the filing said.
Through their company United Atlantic Ventures, Moss and Litinsky sued Trump Media in February for attempting to dilute their shares in the company. A Delaware court did not expedite that lawsuit — clearing the way for Trump Media’s merger vote — but Trump Media agreed that any new shares issued would be placed into an escrow account until the resolution of the lawsuit.
According to a recent Securities and Exchange Commission filing, Moss and Litinsky’s company owns 5.5% of Trump Media — totaling 7,525,000 shares — which are currently worth approximately $388 million.
Shares in Trump Media have been on a whirlwind ride since trading began last week. Shares peaked over $79, but the company’s stock price dramatically fell by 21 percent Monday.
The company’s stock recovered slightly on Tuesday, and Trump’s stake is currently worth more than $4 billion.
(NEW YORK) — Shares of former President Donald Trump’s social media platform dropped more than 20% on Monday after the company disclosed a net loss at the end of last year of more than $58 million.
The decline erased $2 billion in value and, with it, the value of Trump’s majority stake of 57%.
Before Trump Media and Technology Group joined forces with a shell company to go public last week, “management had substantial doubt that TMTG will have sufficient funds to meet its liabilities as they fall due,” the company said in a regulatory filing.
The company also conceded that “TMTG’s success depends in part on the popularity of our brand and the reputation and popularity of President Trump. The value of TMTG’s brand may diminish if the popularity of President Trump were to suffer.”
The performance represented a reality check for a stock that was initially boosted by the enthusiasm of Trump’s supporters. On Monday share’s closed at about $48, down about 21%.
Trump’s stake, on paper, is still valued at more than $3 billion.
Trump is not allowed to sell or borrow against any of his shares for six months. He could ask the board of the directors for a waiver of that so-called lockup provision, but any attempt by Trump to alter that agreement could trigger more selling.
Attendants passing by AT&T’s stand are seen during day 1 of Mobile World Congress 2023 at Fira Barcelona on February 27, 2023 in Barcelona, Spain. (Photo by Joan Cros Garcia – Corbis/Getty Images)
(DALLAS) — Information for some 73 million current and former AT&T customers was recently posted on the dark web in a data breach, the telecommunications company confirmed on Saturday.
“AT&T has determined that AT&T data-specific fields were contained in a data set released on the dark web approximately two weeks ago,” the Dallas-based company said in a statement.
AT&T said the affected data set appears to be from 2019 or earlier and impacts approximately 7.6 million current customers and approximately 65.4 million former account holders.
The data set included personal information such as Social Security numbers, AT&T said. It is unclear if the data originated from AT&T or one of its vendors, the company said.
“AT&T has launched a robust investigation supported by internal and external cybersecurity experts,” the company said.
In a note to customers, the company said that a “number” of AT&T passcodes have been compromised and that it reset the passcodes for all impacted current customers.
“In addition, we will be communicating with current and former account holders with compromised sensitive personal information,” the company said.
The compromised data does not appear to contain personal financial information or call history, AT&T said.
TechCrunch reported that it had informed AT&T on Monday that the leaked data contained encrypted passcodes that were easy to decipher.
This is not the first time the company has experienced issues this year. In February, an outage temporarily knocked out cellphone service for tens of thousands of customers in the U.S. The network disruption was caused by a software update, the company said at the time.
(NEW YORK) — Kia’s K4 sedan, a sleek, compact four-door that debuted this week at the New York International Auto Show, has stiff competition — mainly from the Korean brand’s own sport-utility vehicles and crossovers.
American drivers, however, may soon become enamored with the sedan’s fastback styling and airy interior.
“We’re not all going to drive SUVs … people have different tastes and needs and desires,” Karim Habib, the head of Kia Global Design, told ABC News. “We wanted to make the sedan relevant for the future.”
Habib joined Kia in 2019, overseeing the brand’s exterior, interior, color and material teams. He’s also behind Kia’s “Opposites United” design strategy, which has helped Kia become a household name in the U.S.
The marque has received rave reviews for its EV6 and EV9 electric vehicles, Carnival minivan and Telluride SUV, and many Americans are now choosing Kia over its American competitors.
Habib spoke to ABC News about the brand’s direction, how autonomous vehicle technology is changing vehicle design and why Americans love their boxy SUVs so much.
The interview below has been edited and condensed for clarity.
Q: How would you describe Kia’s design strategy in three words?
Karim: Our design strategy is called “Opposites United.” It is really about embracing the contrasts in life. There are contradictions and unexpected surprises that happen every day … and that’s what makes life enriching, beautiful sometimes, what makes it poetic. That’s what we’re trying to do in an abstract way if you will.
Q: OK, so translate that philosophy to a car.
Karim: Our new K4 is a compact sedan. We tried to make it feel as lean, as sleek, as athletic, as elegant and dynamic as possible. It’s very much about horizontality, where we pull the lines from one side of the car to the other. But the contrasts are vertical, strict graphics. We combined flowing lines, surfaces with very rigid lines. And that pairing is maybe an example of “Opposites United.”
Q: What is your favorite vehicle type to design? An SUV? Sedan? Sports car?
Karim: Each one has its challenges. And each one has its little nuggets of fun that come with it. I would say everything. For me, designing things like a pickup or a van — things I haven’t had much experience with in the past — these are things that I really enjoy doing.
Doing a super sports car is also quite challenging. A car or vehicle with a very, very tight budget can also be a really creative process. I am quite lucky to be a car designer. There’s a lot of fun to be had in many of these segments.
Q: SUVs have gotten bigger over the last few years and the boxy design is in — your EV9 is one example of that. How long will the boxy trend last and how else can SUVs evolve in terms of exterior design?
Karim: The most important thing about design is being authentic. Good industrial design is authentic. That’s why boxy SUVs will always work. It’s a concept that’s meant to be about carrying people in comfort and safety … about having space. The boxy concept just makes sense. And it works particularly well now because we found ways, with technology, to do a box — but to do a cool-looking box, where you have big wheels, a long wheelbase, short overhangs. It’s still a box and looks great. If you look at old Jeeps and Defenders and Land Cruisers — these kind of vehicles were [a box]. So we have that type of connection to these types of architectures.
Q: Do you look back on your designs and say, I should have tweaked this or that? What would you change, if anything, about the EV9?
Karim: To answer your first question: All the time. I don’t think any creative … should be totally satisfied with their work. Designers always think we can do something better.
In the case of the EV9, it’s perfect [he laughs]. No, I am kidding. But I will not reveal it now.
Q: Kia’s vehicles — especially its electrics like the EV9 and EV6 — are getting more Americans interested in the brand. How important is a vehicle’s styling to a consumer?
Karim: Design has strategically been a part of our company’s philosophy, our macro strategy, for a while now. For our consumers, it’s really important to them in the purchasing decision. Design is always very high on the list. Obviously I am not very objective, but I do believe it’s extremely important.
I don’t believe we just style. I believe we try to think of how the product is used and how to improve the type of products … to make the customer experience better.
If we develop [products] in a way that makes the user’s life better and easier — in our case more comfortable and safer and more pleasant — then I believe we have improved people’s lives. And that’s good design in my opinion.
Q: Where are you taking the brand in terms of design?
Karim: We want to be a sustainable mobility provider. Our responsibility toward the environment is very important. It’s important to the brand and it will be very much in the future. To be able to provide a safe, nicely designed, comfortable object that’s affordable … that’s really what we’re about.
Q: A large percentage of Americans drive trucks and SUVs. Was there extra pressure to make the K4 a sexy or attractive sedan to the U.S. buyer?
Karim: I would say this: We believe that sedans are relevant and should be relevant in the future. Not everybody will want the same thing. We’re not all going to drive SUVs … people have different tastes and needs and desires. We need variety. And we wanted to make the sedan relevant for the future. So making it aspirational, something you wanted to have, was important to us. Maybe that’s why we wanted the K4 to be more sporty, more dynamic, more elegant.
Q: Another design trend that’s becoming more popular, especially in EV concepts: no steering wheels, no gear shifters, no side mirrors. What’s your take?
Karim: Autonomous driving technology is obviously coming. Sometimes we think it’s going to come faster, sometimes we think it might come slower, but it will come. And that requires new thinking. It requires us to reconsider the way we create the space that you live in when you move from A to B.
The technology that comes with it also requires you to design differently. There are lots of sensors and cameras and radars and lidars, so the exterior of cars is also going to change quite a bit because of that.
Yeah, it’s a trend — a movement, an evolution, that will come. We are just in the process of learning what it’s really going to be like for us designers.
(NEW YORK) — The Powerball is expected to climb to $975 million for Monday night’s drawing after no ticket won the jackpot in Saturday night’s drawing, the lottery said.
The numbers drawn for Saturday’s $935 million Powerball jackpot were: 12, 13, 33, 50, 52 and red Powerball 23. The power play was 3.
If the jackpot had a winner, that person could have choosen a one-time lump sum payment, the value is expected to be $452.3 million, Powerball said.
The estimated cash value for Monday’s drawing is expected to rise to $471.7 million, Powerball said.
Saturday’s estimated jackpot was the fifth-largest in Powerball’s history and Monday’s drawing is expected to climb closer to the fourth-largest, which was a $1.08 billion prize won in California in July 2023.
There have been 38 consecutive drawings without a jackpot winner. The last winner was on Jan. 1, when a ticket in Michigan won an $842.4 million prize, according to the lottery.
The odds of winning the jackpot are 1 in 292.2 million, according to Powerball.
(NEW YORK) — The Powerball is expected to climb to $975 million for Monday night’s drawing after no ticket won the jackpot in Saturday night’s drawing, the lottery said.
The numbers drawn for Saturday’s $935 million Powerball jackpot were: 12, 13, 33, 50, 52 and red Powerball 23. The power play was 3.
If the jackpot had a winner, that person could have choosen a one-time lump sum payment, the value is expected to be $452.3 million, Powerball said.
The estimated cash value for Monday’s drawing is expected to rise to $471.7 million, Powerball said.
Saturday’s estimated jackpot was the fifth-largest in Powerball’s history and Monday’s drawing is expected to climb closer to the fourth-largest, which was a $1.08 billion prize won in California in July 2023.
There have been 38 consecutive drawings without a jackpot winner. The last winner was on Jan. 1, when a ticket in Michigan won an $842.4 million prize, according to the lottery.
The odds of winning the jackpot are 1 in 292.2 million, according to Powerball.
(NEW YORK) — The jackpot for Saturday’s Powerball drawing is expected to be $935 million, the lottery said.
If a jackpot winner chooses a one-time lump sum payment, the value is expected to be $452.3 million, Powerball said.
Saturday’s estimated jackpot is the fifth-largest in Powerball’s history.
There have been 37 consecutive drawings without a jackpot winner. The last winner was on Jan. 1, when a ticket in Michigan won an $842.4 million prize, according to the lottery.
The odds of winning the jackpot are 1 in 292.2 million, according to Powerball.
(NEW YORK) — The law of supply and demand has shown for centuries that when the amount of a good in high demand dwindles, prices change relative to the availability.
When it comes to the U.S. food supply chain, environmental health impacts on livestock have prompted such price elasticity, most recently with a wave of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI), commonly known as bird flu and the result is has had on wholesale egg prices.
“Prices are impacted when there is more demand and less supply for the product. In the instance of egg prices, the avian flu which has been detected in birds since 2022 has impacted around 80 million birds across the country,” retail analyst Hitha Herzog told ABC News. “That type of exposure could severely hamper production which drives the prices up.”
Bird flu hits dairy cattle farms
As cases of bird flu have continued to sweep farms and producers across the U.S., officials have now launched investigations into an illness involving dairy cows.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service announced Tuesday that dairy cattle in Texas and Kansas have tested positive for HPAI, with symptoms including decreased lactation and low appetite.
“Additional testing was initiated on Friday, March 22, and over the weekend because farms have also reported finding deceased wild birds on their properties,” the agency stated. “Based on findings from Texas, the detections appear to have been introduced by wild birds. Initial testing by the National Veterinary Services Laboratories has not found changes to the virus that would make it more transmissible to humans, which would indicate that the current risk to the public remains low.”
Both federal and state agencies are “moving quickly to conduct additional testing” for the specific bird flu strains associated with the sick cows.
The USDA assured consumers that “there is no concern about the safety of the commercial milk supply or that this circumstance poses a risk to consumer health.”
“Dairies are required to send only milk from healthy animals into processing for human consumption; milk from impacted animals is being diverted or destroyed so that it does not enter the food supply,” the agency continued.
Plus, pasteurization is a requirement for milk sold in stores, which the agency reminded “has continually proven to inactivate bacteria and viruses, like influenza, in milk.”
Could dairy prices, supply be impacted by bird flu?
At this time in “the rapidly evolving situation,” the USDA said that milk loss from sick cows “is too limited to have a major impact on supply,” with the hope and caveat that there “should be no impact on the price of milk or other dairy products.”
With the latest waves of bird flu wiping out entire flocks of egg-laying chickens, eventually causing shortages and some increased prices, this new impact on dairy cows begs the question, could impact milk and dairy prices eventually be an issue at the consumer leve, if at all?
“The main way this could impact the consumer is through the output of milk being produced. The pasteurization process is so rigorous it would kill the virus if it was present in milk from infected cows, however only 10% of the exposed herds have been infected,” Herzog said. “While there will be some milk loss, the panhandle area accounts for around 625,000 cows and about 1.3B gallons of milk produced annually. The affected milk will be small compared to the bigger picture of production.”
The chief research officer of H Squared Research, explained that at this point, she doesn’t believe the outbreak will impact commercial dairy prices, “because the scale is small.”
“However if more of the herd is infected, or if production slows because the herd has to recover, or worse they have to dump several millions of gallons of milk, that would have an impact on pricing,” Herzog said.
(NEW YORK) — Election denier Mike Lindell’s company MyPillow is facing a court-ordered eviction from a warehouse in Minnesota amid his ongoing legal battles related to his claims about the 2020 election and voting machines, Lindell confirmed to ABC News.
But Lindell claims the eviction does not stem from financial difficulties, and rather is just a formality related to a mutual agreement between himself and the owner of the warehouse to vacate the property, which he says has not been used by MyPillow since the spring of 2023.
Lindell said MyPillow had subleased the space to a candy company last year and was planning on subleasing it to a sugar beet company this year — but the sugar beet company backed out of the contract at the last minute, leaving himself and the warehouse owner “stranded.”
He said he considered finding another subleaser, but he and the warehouse’s owner, First Industrial, eventually decided to officially end their contract through the eviction process.
“And I said that’s fine,” Lindell told ABC News.
MyPillow does owe the owner of the warehouse $217,489 in past-due rent, according to court records.
“Plaintiff seeks to have Defendant evicted from the Premises for failing to pay Rent and other payments and charges due under the Lease Agreement in the amount of Two Hundred Seventeen Thousand, Four Hundred Eighty-Nine and 74/100 Dollars,” a complaint from First Industrial says.
But Lindell insisted that his pillow company is doing fine financially.
“MyPillow is in great shape,” Lindell said. “We have our best commercial out right now that launched on Monday, the most successful one in five years. It’s amazing.”
First International did not immediately respond to a request for comment from ABC News.
Over the years, MyPillow has lost numerous advertising opportunities due to Lindell’s pushing of false and unsubstantiated claims about the 2020 election and election systems around the country.
Last month, a federal judge in Minnesota affirmed a $5 million arbitration award against Lindell, siding with a software engineer who challenged data that Lindell said proves China interfered in the 2020 election in favor of President Joe Biden. Lindell had offered a $5 million reward to anyone who could prove that “packet captures” he provided were not valid data “from the November 2020 election,” leading software engineer Robert Zeidman to file for arbitration when a panel of contest judges failed to declare him the winner after he concluded the data contained no such information.
Lindell again said on Thursday that he’s appealing this decision, and that the case will “go into next year.”
Lindell says he has spent more than $45 million of his own money on claims about the security of voting machines and his push for the use of paper ballots in the 2024 election.
