Legal - McGraw-Hill Introduction to Business

Mattel Sues Rap Snacks over “Barbie-Que” Chips

August 19, 2022

Since 1994, Rap Snacks has sold chips, popcorn, and even instant noodles featuring hip hop stars like Snoop Dogg, Migos, and Lil Baby on the packaging. The most recent addition to this lineup of talent is Nicki Minaj, who launched her “Barbie-Que Honey Truffle” potato chips earlier this summer. While Rap Snacks hoped this high-profile partnership would make a big splash on social media, the brand instead attracted the attention of an entirely different audience: the notoriously litigious toy company Continue reading →

Copyright, Entertainment, Ethics, Food & Drink, Legal, Marketing, Music, Packaging, Promotions

Bonus Chapter A: Business Law, Chapter 13: Marketing, Chapter 14: Product and Price, Chapter 15: Distribution, Chapter 16: Place and Promotion, Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits, Chapter 4: Ethics and Social Responsibility

Banks Plan to Reduce or Eliminate Overdraft Fees

February 25, 2022

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In theory, overdraft fees charged by banks are meant to be a “convenience” for customers so that their purchases are not declined when they are unknowingly low on funds. In practice, however, these fees have become a major revenue generator for banks that charge an average of $33.58 for each overdraft. That means consumers can be hit with multiple fees if they accidentally make numerous purchases while past the limits of their account. Studies show that this practice particularly harms Continue reading →

Banking, CFPB, Ethics, Finance, Legal, Overdraft fees, Regulation

Bonus Chapter A: Business Law, Bonus Chapter D: Personal Finance, Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits, Chapter 20: Money and Financial Institutions, Chapter 4: Ethics and Social Responsibility

Big Tech Case Results in Split Decision

September 15, 2021

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Over the last year, Apple has been engaged in a legal battle with Epic Games, the software developer behind the blockbuster video game Fortnite. The company sued Apple after the tech giant removed the mobile version of Fornite from its App Store, alleging that Epic encouraged customers to purchase the game on different platforms. Apple claimed that this prevented it from collecting the commission it earns on every sale through the App Store, which Epic then accused of being anti-competitive Continue reading →

Antitrust, Apple, Entrepreneurship, Ethics, Legal, Monopolies, Regulation, Silicon Valley

Bonus Chapter A: Business Law, Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits, Chapter 3: Globalization, Chapter 6: Entrepreneurship

Tugboats and High Tide Remove Suez Canal Blockage as Trade Resumes

March 30, 2021

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Last week, one of the world’s most important commercial waterways shut down as a 200,000-ton vessel became lodged in the Suez Canal. After the enormous ship could not be removed immediately, experts started to worry that Ever Given would remain stuck for weeks and wreak billions of dollars in economic havoc. Then yesterday, the container ship was finally dislodged from the canal with the help of high-powered tugboats and an unusually high tide brought on by a full moon.

Now Continue reading →

Ethics, Global, Legal, Product Distribution, Shipping, Suez Canal, Supply chains, Transportation

Bonus Chapter A: Business Law, Chapter 15: Distribution, Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits, Chapter 3: Globalization, Chapter 4: Ethics and Social Responsibility, Chapter 9: Production and Operations Management

Uber and Lyft Nearly Shut Down Service in California Last Week

August 24, 2020

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In 2018, California’s Supreme Court ruled against a delivery company that classified its employees as independent contractors. This landmark decision was followed two years later by official legislation that required businesses throughout the state to turn contracted staff into full-time workers or else face legal action. The most prominent targets of this new law were Uber and Lyft, the rideshare giants that employ tens of thousands of people as independent contractors.

According to consumer advocates, drivers for Uber and Continue reading →

Ethics, Human Resources, Labor Relations, Legal, Lyft, Organizational Structure, Startups, Uber

Bonus Chapter A: Business Law, Bonus Chapter B: Technology and New Media, Chapter 11: Human Resource Management, Chapter 12: Labor Management and Unions, Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits, Chapter 4: Ethics and Social Responsibility, Chapter 6: Entrepreneurship, Chapter 8: Organizational Culture and Structure

More than 40 Percent of Renters Are at Risk of Eviction

July 28, 2020

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Last Friday, a federal moratorium on evictions for tenants in government-assisted housing expired. With eviction moratoriums in many states also at an end, experts fear that millions of Americans could be kicked out of their homes in the coming months. According to one estimate, as many as 40 million people could be evicted during the pandemic. “It’s like nothing we’ve ever seen,” said John Pollock of the National Coalition for a Civil Right to Counsel.

Mass unemployment as a result Continue reading →

Coronavirus, Economics, Ethics, Health, Human Resources, Legal, Real Estate

Bonus Chapter A: Business Law, Chapter 11: Human Resource Management, Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits, Chapter 2: Economics, Chapter 4: Ethics and Social Responsibility

NYC Lawmakers Rule that Stores Must Accept Cash

February 18, 2020

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Rather than worry about having cash on hand, many American consumers now prefer to use credit or debit cards as their preferred methods of payment. Companies are usually happy to oblige cashless customers since cards are easy to process and keep busy lines moving. In fact, a number of retailers and restaurants across the country have switched to cashless payment models that rely entirely on cards or mobile apps. According to consumer advocates and lawmakers, however, these businesses could be Continue reading →

Cash, Credit Cards, Ethics, Legal, Mobile Payments, Money, Operations Management, Pricing, Product Distribution, Regulation

Bonus Chapter A: Business Law, Bonus Chapter B: Technology and New Media, Chapter 14: Product and Price, Chapter 15: Distribution, Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits, Chapter 20: Money and Financial Institutions, Chapter 4: Ethics and Social Responsibility, Chapter 9: Production and Operations Management

Chipotle Fined $1.3 Million for Child Labor Violations

February 4, 2020

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The national unemployment rate is currently at 3.5 percent, its lowest point in decades. As a result, retailers and restaurant chains across the country are having a difficult time finding workers to fill low-wage positions. “Understaffing is a massive problem,” said Jonathan Maze, executive editor of Restaurant Business Magazine. “You have companies that are stressed to try to fill hours and keep people on, and it can lead to violations.”

According to a recent ruling from a Massachusetts court, Continue reading →

Chipotle, Ethics, Food & Drink, Franchising, Human Resources, Labor Relations, Legal, Regulation

Bonus Chapter A: Business Law, Chapter 11: Human Resource Management, Chapter 12: Labor Management and Unions, Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits, Chapter 4: Ethics and Social Responsibility, Chapter 5: Forms of Business Ownership

Food Delivery Services Anger Unsuspecting Restaurants

January 30, 2020

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Last weekend during a busy dinner service, San Francisco restaurant owner Pim Techamuanvivit received a strange phone call. The caller wanted to know when the delivery he ordered through Seamless would turn up since he had already waited 45 minutes for it. “I think you must be confused, because I don’t do delivery,” replied Techamuanvivit. The frustrated person on the other line then asked why her business was listed on Seamless. Upon further investigation, Techamuanvivit discovered that both Seamless and Continue reading →

California, Entrepreneurship, Ethics, Food & Drink, Grubhub, Legal, Operations Management, Pricing, Product Distribution, Seamless

Bonus Chapter A: Business Law, Bonus Chapter B: Technology and New Media, Chapter 14: Product and Price, Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits, Chapter 4: Ethics and Social Responsibility, Chapter 6: Entrepreneurship, Chapter 9: Production and Operations Management

Self-Ordering Kiosks at McDonald’s Lack Cash Capabilities

November 14, 2019

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Earlier this year, McDonald’s spent $300 million acquiring a data analysis and artificial intelligence startup called Dynamic Yield. Along with providing the fast food chain with tons of information about its operations, this new technology will also help the company upgrade its growing fleet of self-ordering kiosks. Customers can place orders on these large touchscreens rather than wait in line, which the company claims improves efficiency and increases sales. As a result, McDonald’s wants to place these machines in as Continue reading →

Cash, Ethics, Food & Drink, Global, Legal, McDonald’s, Operations Management, Product Distribution, Regulation, Retail

Bonus Chapter A: Business Law, Bonus Chapter B: Technology and New Media, Chapter 14: Product and Price, Chapter 1: Taking Risks and Making Profits, Chapter 20: Money and Financial Institutions, Chapter 3: Globalization, Chapter 4: Ethics and Social Responsibility, Chapter 9: Production and Operations Management