January 2023

On Monday, M&Ms announced that they will be retiring the “spokescandies” after the changes made to the characters sparked nationwide criticism. “In the last year, we’ve made some changes to our beloved spokescandies. We weren’t sure if anyone would even notice. And we definitely didn’t think it would break the internet,” M&Ms announced in a statement. “But now we get it – even a candy’s shoes...

On Monday, Microsoft announced a multibillion-dollar investment deal with ChatGPT-maker OpenAI. ChatGPT is OpenAI’s artificial intelligence tool that automatically generates text based on written prompts. According to CNBC, “The software debuted in late November and quickly turned into a viral sensation as tech executives and venture capitalists gushed about it on Twitter, even comparing it to Apple’s debut of the iPhone in 2007.” Monday’s announcement is the third phase of the...

Netflix’s new ad-supported tier is a hit and has brought in an unexpected number of subscribers for the fourth quarter. The ad-supported tier debuted in November at $6.99 per month in the U.S. This subscription service consists of four minutes of ads for every hour of content and is compared to Netflix Basic, $9.99/mo, Netflix Standard, $15.49/mo, and Netflix Premium, $19.99/mo. Netflix had originally expected to get...

T-Mobile announced last week that 37 million current customers are victims of a data breach that started on November 25 and was discovered on January 5, 2023. CNN reported, “the hacker stole customer data that included names, billing addresses, emails, phone numbers, dates of birth, T-Mobile account numbers and information describing the kind of service they have with the wireless carrier. T-Mobile said no social security...

The Tennis Channel is diving deeper into the fastest-growing sport in the nation, pickleball. On Thursday, it was announced by Major League Pickleball that the league’s premier-level tournament semifinals and finals will be broadcasted on the Tennis Channel. The Tennis Channel is taking advantage of the extreme surge in the popularity of pickleball. According to the CEO of the Tennis Channel, Ken Solomon, the TV network has...

Amazon hit US charities and AmazonSmile users with bad news on Wednesday. Amid cost-cutting efforts, Amazon announced that it plans to discontinue its charity donation program, AmazonSmile. The program was first launched in 2013 and since then, Amazon said it has donated about $500 million to charities. In an email to users and a statement posted online, Amazon said it plans to “wind down” AmazonSmile by February,...

On Tuesday, Party City filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. America’s largest party supply store has been struggling to recover after the pandemic and as high inflation affects consumer spending. According to NBC, “Troubled retailers often seek bankruptcy protection following the holiday season to take advantage of the cash cushion provided by recent sales.” Additionally, Party City “reported $1 billion to $10 billion of estimated assets and...

Starbucks announced the expansion of its deal with DoorDash on Tuesday. Now, customers in Northern California, Texas, Georgia, Florida and more will be able to receive their coffee orders via DoorDash. Starbucks had previously tested out delivery through DoorDash last year in Atlanta, Houston, Sacramento, Seattle, Portland and New York City. Starbucks said it would be expanding its DoorDash delivery locations in the coming weeks with the...

On Tuesday, Apple introduced new 14- and 16- inch MacBook Pros that can be purchased with the latest M2 Pro or M2 Max chips. The Mac mini computer will also be updated with the M2 or M2 Pro chips. The M2 Pro and M2 Max chips are the most powerful processors for MacBooks and the Mac mini. According to Apple, “With M2 Pro and M2 Max,...

Peloton has added a new member to the leadership team, Leslie Berland, former Chief Marketing Officer at Twitter. Berland left her position at Twitter in November after Elon Musk took over the company and wiped out many executives. Prior to that, “she held various marketing leadership positions at American Express for more than 10 years, where she was in charge of media, advertising and sponsorships. Berland...