NEWARK, N.J. (CBSNewYork ) — New Jersey may be close to ordering new restrictions due to the coronavirus pandemic. On Thursday, Gov. Phil Murphy warned he may be forced to take action, following a surge in cases and hospitalizations, CBS2’s Jessica Layton reported. The positivity rate has soared to over 7%. When it comes to new infections, the state hasn’t seen numbers like this in more than six months. In fact, University Hospital in Newark still has tents set up from screening in the early days of the pandemic. It says it is ready to use them again, if necessary. “Jessica, we have still at least five to 10 people being admitted a day with the disease,” Dr. Shereef Elnahal said. “We’re really on the cusp of getting to a bad place in our hospitals, which ends up being a risk to everybody.” Elnahal heads the hospital and said the number of beds needed for COVID-19 patients tripled in less than two weeks. In fact, Newark is considered one of New Jersey’s most concerning hot spots. The positivity rate is a whopping 12.3%. The city is in Essex County, which, along with Bergen and Passaic counties, each reported more than 200 new cases Thursday. “Do we want to be where we were in the spring? Do we want to have to see nonessential businesses close?” Elnahal said. CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC Tri-State Coronavirus Travel Advisory Quarantine List Resources, Hotlines, Unemployment & Covering Bills Remote Learning Tools For Parents Teaching At Home CBS2’s Dr. Max Answers Your Health Questions What To Do If Someone Isn’t Social Distancing Or Wearing A Mask? Expert: Parents Be Mindful Of Children’s Stress After Months Of Isolation Chopper 2 Over Empty NYC Streets, Landmarks Complete Coronavirus Coverage The Murphy administration has been sounding the alarm on the dramatic spike in the Garden State over the past several days. It’s a huge blow, considering not that long ago the state was priding itself on how it cracked the curve. The spike could lead to restrictions for already struggling businesses. “This virus has not taken a break and we cannot, either. Pandemic fatigue is a real threat to containing COVID-19,” New Jersey Health Commissioner Judy Persichilli said. “How close are we to do something? Close, so bear with us. We will clearly be taking action. And I hope it will be action that balances all the various challenges and interests that we have,” Murphy said. Doctors have learned so much about treating people with COVID-19, so they say one bright spot is patients don’t seem to be getting as sick and their hospital stays have been shorter, on average three to four days versus a week or more back in the spring and summer. MORE FROM CBS NEW YORK New York City’s New Quarantine Travel Rules Begin, New Jersey Adds States To Advisory List More Than 2,000 Inmates Released Early From New Jersey State Prisons In Effort To Prevent COVID Spread NYPD: At Least 50 People Arrested After Attempting To ‘Hijack’ Peaceful Protest In Midtown You can get the latest news, sports and weather on our brand new CBS New York app. Download here .
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NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) – Police are descending on New York area airports to put the brakes on fake cabbies who claim to offer bargains, but are likely a ripoff. Many travelers have been getting repeatedly hassled by drivers offering car services, but these are not legit cab , limo or ride-share drivers, reports CBS2’s Dave Carlin. “Why can’t the airport regulate that a little better?” said David Bennet, a businessman in from Dallas who says he’s seen little improvement. For years hidden camera investigations have shown “hustler drivers” cruising and aggressively soliciting people , with mixed results. “Since I’ve never been here, I definitely would never jump in and go with a random person,” said Valerie Terry of Louisville, Ky. Others are pressured into taking rides that wind up over-charging them and putting their lives at risk. Ride-share and cab drivers who say that they follow the rules welcome the tough new crackdown, but they hope it goes far enough. “They’re ripping off people left and right,” said Manoj Kumar of Richmond Hill. It seems you could easily identify them just from what they’re doing, so why do we still get it every single time though the airport? “It’s very lucrative for someone to come here and do these illegal fares,” said Charles O’Connor. “We’re going to request legislative action to increase the fines and penalties… By hitting people in the wallet, absolutely.” The addition of more undercover enforcement officers is not a new promise, but it’s right on the heels of a man with many previous solicitation arrests who was caught after leading officers on a chase. Rooting out repeat offenders is the main thrust of this effort at LaGuardia, John F. Kennedy and Newark airports. Last year there were nearly 700 solicitation arrests at LaGuardia and Kennedy, and the goal is to push to double that number for 2018.
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Police Ramp Up Crackdown On Fake Car Service Drivers At NYC Airports
Police Ramp Up Crackdown On Fake Car Service Drivers At NYC Airports was last modified: July 19th, 2018 by hubertjaui
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) — We all know that feeling of frustration when you go to sign into a bank or online store and can’t remember what password you used. Many people try to solve this problem by picking passwords they can remember easily. Unfortunately, those passwords can also be guessed easily by hackers looking to drain your bank account or ring up fraudulent purchases. In fact, this practice of using easy to guess passwords is so common that Time magazine culled a list of the Top 25 worst passwords for 2017, including: • 123456 • Password • QWERTY (the first six letters on a keyboard) Hackers can guess these passwords and not only break into personal accounts, but also to break into company networks when employees use weak passwords. Fortunately, there are tools and tricks you can use to avoid putting yourself at risk, CBS2’s cyber security expert Siobhan Gorman reports. First, use long passwords-with at least 12 letters. Second, avoid obvious substitutions-like changing out let letter O for ZERO. Hackers guess those all the time. Third, avoid using the same password at least for sensitive accounts like banking. To track all these passwords, you may want to use a password manager. Popular ones include Norton’s Identity Safe Password Generator and LastPass. It may take a little extra time to set up a strong password system, but you can avoid a lot of frustration and risk of cyber break-ins later on.
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Eye On Cyber: How To Create A Secure Password
Eye On Cyber: How To Create A Secure Password was last modified: July 19th, 2018 by LakeshaHolzman
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) — We all know that feeling of frustration when you go to sign into a bank or online store and can’t remember what password you used. Many people try to solve this problem by picking passwords they can remember easily. Unfortunately, those passwords can also be guessed easily by hackers looking to drain your bank account or ring up fraudulent purchases. In fact, this practice of using easy to guess passwords is so common that Time magazine culled a list of the Top 25 worst passwords for 2017, including: • 123456 • Password • QWERTY (the first six letters on a keyboard) Hackers can guess these passwords and not only break into personal accounts, but also to break into company networks when employees use weak passwords. Fortunately, there are tools and tricks you can use to avoid putting yourself at risk, CBS2’s cyber security expert Siobhan Gorman reports. First, use long passwords-with at least 12 letters. Second, avoid obvious substitutions-like changing out let letter O for ZERO. Hackers guess those all the time. Third, avoid using the same password at least for sensitive accounts like banking. To track all these passwords, you may want to use a password manager. Popular ones include Norton’s Identity Safe Password Generator and LastPass. It may take a little extra time to set up a strong password system, but you can avoid a lot of frustration and risk of cyber break-ins later on.
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Eye On Cyber: How To Create A Secure Password
Eye On Cyber: How To Create A Secure Password was last modified: July 19th, 2018 by MercedeWPI
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) — It’s peak rental season in New York City, but lots of living options comes with lots of problems especially if you don’t do your homework. Sabin Wizman thought her one bedroom with a view of the East River and modern finishing was a steal. With assurances from her realtor she negotiated the building down to $4,000 a month. When she moved in in May, she ran into a rude awakening. “As you open your windows you have East Side Heliport that runs 12 hours a day from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., at times up to four helicopters,” Wizman said. “I was told by the management here that they’re not required to let me know that there’s a helipad.” She says the building told her it was her job to investigate before hand, and if she wanted to get out she’d have to pay for two months after she moved out. Real estate attorney Adam Leitman Bailey says the leasing company is well within their rights. “Landlords aren’t required to tell you anything,” he told CBS2. “I recommend to clients before signing lease that they stand in front of the door for a half-hour, greeting other tenants and asking them how they like the building.” Environment is only one of the many things to consider, and Leitman Bailey says legally it’s on you to do the homework. By law, a building does have to disclose whether there were bed bugs in the apartment but only in the last year. The Department of Housing Preservation and Development has a free database that discloses complaints and violations like leaks, bed bugs, and heating problems. The Department of Buildings has a database that lets you know about construction planned in the area and elevator issues. “Go during work hours, after work hours, morning, evening, and the weekends,” real estate broker Anthony Lolli said. “You really want to cover the full gamut.” “There’s situations where people move into buildings they don’t know, there’s a homeless shelter down the block, and maybe a lot of people coming in and out,” real estate broker Carlos Angelucci said. Otherwise, you could be out of luck. Experts say it’s currently a renter’s market, so take time before you sign. There’s always another apartment around the corner.
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Tips & Advice On Doing Your Homework Before Renting An Apartment
Tips & Advice On Doing Your Homework Before Renting An Apartment was last modified: July 19th, 2018 by linda
NEW YORK (AP) — The hammering and drilling began just months after Jared Kushner’s family real estate firm bought a converted warehouse apartment building in the hip, Williamsburg section of Brooklyn. Tenants say it started early in the morning and went on until nightfall, so loud that it drowned out normal conversation, so violent it rattled pictures off the walls. So much dust wafted through ducts and under doorways that it coated beds and clothes in closets. Rats crawled through holes in the walls. Workers with passkeys barged in unannounced. Residents who begged for relief got a standard reply, “We have permits.” More than a dozen current and former residents of the building told The Associated Press that they believe the Kushner Cos.’ relentless construction, along with rent hikes of $500 a month or more, was part of a campaign to push tenants out of rent-stabilized apartments and bring high-paying condo buyers in. If so, it was a remarkably successful campaign. An AP investigation found that over the past three years, more than 250 rent-stabilized apartments — 75 percent of the building — were either emptied or sold as the Kushner Cos. was converting the building to luxury condos. Those sales so far have totaled more than $155 million, an average of $1.2 million per apartment. “They won, they succeeded,” says Barth Bazyluk, who left apartment C606 with his wife and baby daughter in December. “You have to be ignorant or dumb to think this wasn’t deliberate.” This up-close look at one of the Kushner Cos.’ largest residential buildings in New York illustrates what critics describe as the firm’s sharp-elbowed business practices while it was run by President Donald Trump’s son-in-law and eventual White House adviser Jared Kushner. The Kushner Cos. told the AP that it didn’t harass any tenants to get them out. But the data suggest turnover at the building known as the Austin Nichols House was significantly higher than city averages for coveted rent-stabilized buildings, leaving behind a trail of anger, disrupted lives and a $10 million lawsuit filed late Sunday in which 20 tenants say they were harassed and exposed to high levels of cancer-causing dust. On Monday, a New York state agency announced it was launching an investigation into whether Kushner Cos. violated state housing laws and regulations meant to prevent landlords from disturbing tenants’ peace and privacy. “We’ve looked into hundreds of rent-stabilized buildings and this is one of the worst we’ve ever seen,” says Aaron Carr, head of tenant watchdog Housing Rights Initiative, whose investigation led to the lawsuit. “The scale and speed of tenants leaving, the conditions to which they were exposed, provides a window into the Kushner Cos.’ predatory business model.” In a statement, the Kushner Cos. acknowledged it received some complaints about construction during major renovations, which ended in December 2017, but said that it responded to them immediately and that “tremendous care was taken to prevent dust and inconvenience to tenants.” It said many tenants moved out when their rent was increased to the maximum allowed under rent-stabilization rules. Those rules limit the amount that landlords can hike rent each year to protect tenants from getting pushed out, though in this building the rents weren’t cheap, with one-bedrooms going for more than $3,000 a month. Also, the city’s building department says it sent inspectors to the building dozens of times since 2015 and uncovered no evidence that construction rules were being violated, a finding that some residents say doesn’t square with their experiences. The landmarked Austin Nichols House at 184 Kent Avenue, for decades a warehouse for groceries and Wild Turkey bourbon, was gutted by a previous owner in 2010 to create sleek apartments that took advantage of the building’s high ceilings and waterfront views. When Jared Kushner and two partners bought it for $275 million in April 2015, they made it clear they wanted to convert the building’s 338 apartments — all of them rent-stabilized — into condos. All but nine were occupied, and other than maxing out the rent, developers had few tools if they wanted to get tenants out. Just months after the purchase, the Kushners began extensive renovations, ripping out appliances, floors and countertops that had been installed five years before. “There were consistently people in the hallway early, 8 or so, banging on things, taking down walls. There was lots of dust. … They had fans, and they were blowing dust under the doors,” says tech salesman Marcus Carvalho, who left the building in December after six years, deciding the $1,000 or so increase in rent to renew his lease wasn’t worth it. “I didn’t want to spend another minute in that construction zone.” His 679-square-foot (63-square-meter), one-room apartment, B502, sold the next month for $800,000. A few weeks after Carvalho left, the woman in C405 couldn’t take the noise anymore either. “It’s like having a root canal without the physical pain. … It was drilling from every direction,” says Jane Coxwell, a chef who works late nights and writes at home during the day. “It was impossible to take a call. You could never sit and read a book or get any work done.” Then came the rats, including one she accosted with a tennis racket as it teetered on a curtain rod in her bathroom. She also had to contend with a flood after workers hit a pipe in the unit above her and with the constant fear workers would burst into her apartment at any moment after two with passkeys tried to do just that, once while she was in her underwear. Coxwell, one of the plaintiffs in Sunday’s suit, says she sent dozens of emails to Kushner managers for more than a year asking for help, but got little relief. One particularly noisy day she finally broke down, walked up to a construction manager and worker standing near her door and found herself forcing the words out through tears. “I understand you have to work, but I don’t know how to ask anymore,” she pleaded. “Please, please, can you keep it down?” She says the men just laughed. Much of the work was done in 2016, and then the Kushners went on a selling spree. In 2017 alone, the company sold 99 apartments in the building, according to Jared Kushner’s federal financial disclosure forms. Brokerage data show an additional 16 apartments sold by early March 2018. That same month Kushner Cos. had 151 vacant apartments in the building, according to a court document. The Kushner Cos. refused to confirm the numbers. At the height of the construction, tenants fought back with three dozen complaints to the city’s 311 hotline about work after hours, banging and pounding, falling debris and rodents. After people complained about dust, Kushner Cos. put plastic sheeting around doorways, though many say it didn’t help much. And after they complained about workers entering their apartments without permission, the company eventually posted guards in hallways. “The banner says `Luxury Waterfront Homes For Sale,”‘ says plaintiff Jeff Werner, a banker who’s lived in the building for eight years. “It doesn’t advertise `Live in a Construction Zone with White Toxic Dust Blowing.”‘ Dust samples taken from nine apartments in May by consultants Olmsted Environmental Services turned up dangerously high levels of lead and crystalline silica. Breathing in tiny silica particles has been linked to lung cancer, liver disease and an incurable swelling of the lungs. The $10 million lawsuit alleges Kushner Cos. and its partners attempted to push tenants out by creating unlivable conditions with construction noise and dust in violation of state and city rules and laws. It also alleges the Kushners, by failing to take proper precautions, exposed residents to a “cloud of toxic smoke and dust.” The Kushner Cos. disputed the findings of the environmental report, alleging it appeared to be an updated version of a report prepared several years ago. “The lawsuit filed today by certain current and former tenants of Austin Nichols House is totally without merit and we intend to defend it vigorously,” the company said in a statement issued Monday afternoon. “The residents of Austin Nichols House were fully informed about the planned renovation and all work was completed under the full supervision by the New York City Department of Buildings and other regulatory agencies, with full permits and with no violations for these claims.” “Tenants were never pressured to leave their apartments and the market-rate rent stabilization was – and continues to be – complied with under applicable rent guidelines,” the statement continued. “Any complaints during construction (which was completed in 2017) were evaluated and addressed promptly by the property management team. The property management team is committed to continuing to meet the needs of all residents.” Ronan Conroy says he complained to the Kushners several times, walking down to the sales office once to confront management in person. “Your strategy is to get people out, right?” Conroy recalls asking a staffer at the desk. He says the man basically shrugged, offered no dispute, then said, “We can let you out of your lease.” Frustrated and facing a big rent hike, Conroy left in early 2016. “My strong impression is they made the building as unlivable as possible so they could get everyone out of there.” (© Copyright 2018 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)
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Jared Kushner’s Family Firm Accused Of Pushing Out Tenants
Jared Kushner’s Family Firm Accused Of Pushing Out Tenants was last modified: July 16th, 2018 by Freya74Ncpaeb
NEW YORK (AP) — The hammering and drilling began just months after Jared Kushner’s family real estate firm bought a converted warehouse apartment building in the hip, Williamsburg section of Brooklyn. Tenants say it started early in the morning and went on until nightfall, so loud that it drowned out normal conversation, so violent it rattled pictures off the walls. So much dust wafted through ducts and under doorways that it coated beds and clothes in closets. Rats crawled through holes in the walls. Workers with passkeys barged in unannounced. Residents who begged for relief got a standard reply, “We have permits.” More than a dozen current and former residents of the building told The Associated Press that they believe the Kushner Cos.’ relentless construction, along with rent hikes of $500 a month or more, was part of a campaign to push tenants out of rent-stabilized apartments and bring high-paying condo buyers in. If so, it was a remarkably successful campaign. An AP investigation found that over the past three years, more than 250 rent-stabilized apartments — 75 percent of the building — were either emptied or sold as the Kushner Cos. was converting the building to luxury condos. Those sales so far have totaled more than $155 million, an average of $1.2 million per apartment. “They won, they succeeded,” says Barth Bazyluk, who left apartment C606 with his wife and baby daughter in December. “You have to be ignorant or dumb to think this wasn’t deliberate.” This up-close look at one of the Kushner Cos.’ largest residential buildings in New York illustrates what critics describe as the firm’s sharp-elbowed business practices while it was run by President Donald Trump’s son-in-law and eventual White House adviser Jared Kushner. The Kushner Cos. told the AP that it didn’t harass any tenants to get them out. But the data suggest turnover at the building known as the Austin Nichols House was significantly higher than city averages for coveted rent-stabilized buildings, leaving behind a trail of anger, disrupted lives and a $10 million lawsuit filed late Sunday in which 20 tenants say they were harassed and exposed to high levels of cancer-causing dust. On Monday, a New York state agency announced it was launching an investigation into whether Kushner Cos. violated state housing laws and regulations meant to prevent landlords from disturbing tenants’ peace and privacy. “We’ve looked into hundreds of rent-stabilized buildings and this is one of the worst we’ve ever seen,” says Aaron Carr, head of tenant watchdog Housing Rights Initiative, whose investigation led to the lawsuit. “The scale and speed of tenants leaving, the conditions to which they were exposed, provides a window into the Kushner Cos.’ predatory business model.” In a statement, the Kushner Cos. acknowledged it received some complaints about construction during major renovations, which ended in December 2017, but said that it responded to them immediately and that “tremendous care was taken to prevent dust and inconvenience to tenants.” It said many tenants moved out when their rent was increased to the maximum allowed under rent-stabilization rules. Those rules limit the amount that landlords can hike rent each year to protect tenants from getting pushed out, though in this building the rents weren’t cheap, with one-bedrooms going for more than $3,000 a month. Also, the city’s building department says it sent inspectors to the building dozens of times since 2015 and uncovered no evidence that construction rules were being violated, a finding that some residents say doesn’t square with their experiences. The landmarked Austin Nichols House at 184 Kent Avenue, for decades a warehouse for groceries and Wild Turkey bourbon, was gutted by a previous owner in 2010 to create sleek apartments that took advantage of the building’s high ceilings and waterfront views. When Jared Kushner and two partners bought it for $275 million in April 2015, they made it clear they wanted to convert the building’s 338 apartments — all of them rent-stabilized — into condos. All but nine were occupied, and other than maxing out the rent, developers had few tools if they wanted to get tenants out. Just months after the purchase, the Kushners began extensive renovations, ripping out appliances, floors and countertops that had been installed five years before. “There were consistently people in the hallway early, 8 or so, banging on things, taking down walls. There was lots of dust. … They had fans, and they were blowing dust under the doors,” says tech salesman Marcus Carvalho, who left the building in December after six years, deciding the $1,000 or so increase in rent to renew his lease wasn’t worth it. “I didn’t want to spend another minute in that construction zone.” His 679-square-foot (63-square-meter), one-room apartment, B502, sold the next month for $800,000. A few weeks after Carvalho left, the woman in C405 couldn’t take the noise anymore either. “It’s like having a root canal without the physical pain. … It was drilling from every direction,” says Jane Coxwell, a chef who works late nights and writes at home during the day. “It was impossible to take a call. You could never sit and read a book or get any work done.” Then came the rats, including one she accosted with a tennis racket as it teetered on a curtain rod in her bathroom. She also had to contend with a flood after workers hit a pipe in the unit above her and with the constant fear workers would burst into her apartment at any moment after two with passkeys tried to do just that, once while she was in her underwear. Coxwell, one of the plaintiffs in Sunday’s suit, says she sent dozens of emails to Kushner managers for more than a year asking for help, but got little relief. One particularly noisy day she finally broke down, walked up to a construction manager and worker standing near her door and found herself forcing the words out through tears. “I understand you have to work, but I don’t know how to ask anymore,” she pleaded. “Please, please, can you keep it down?” She says the men just laughed. Much of the work was done in 2016, and then the Kushners went on a selling spree. In 2017 alone, the company sold 99 apartments in the building, according to Jared Kushner’s federal financial disclosure forms. Brokerage data show an additional 16 apartments sold by early March 2018. That same month Kushner Cos. had 151 vacant apartments in the building, according to a court document. The Kushner Cos. refused to confirm the numbers. At the height of the construction, tenants fought back with three dozen complaints to the city’s 311 hotline about work after hours, banging and pounding, falling debris and rodents. After people complained about dust, Kushner Cos. put plastic sheeting around doorways, though many say it didn’t help much. And after they complained about workers entering their apartments without permission, the company eventually posted guards in hallways. “The banner says `Luxury Waterfront Homes For Sale,”‘ says plaintiff Jeff Werner, a banker who’s lived in the building for eight years. “It doesn’t advertise `Live in a Construction Zone with White Toxic Dust Blowing.”‘ Dust samples taken from nine apartments in May by consultants Olmsted Environmental Services turned up dangerously high levels of lead and crystalline silica. Breathing in tiny silica particles has been linked to lung cancer, liver disease and an incurable swelling of the lungs. The $10 million lawsuit alleges Kushner Cos. and its partners attempted to push tenants out by creating unlivable conditions with construction noise and dust in violation of state and city rules and laws. It also alleges the Kushners, by failing to take proper precautions, exposed residents to a “cloud of toxic smoke and dust.” The Kushner Cos. disputed the findings of the environmental report, alleging it appeared to be an updated version of a report prepared several years ago. “The lawsuit filed today by certain current and former tenants of Austin Nichols House is totally without merit and we intend to defend it vigorously,” the company said in a statement issued Monday afternoon. “The residents of Austin Nichols House were fully informed about the planned renovation and all work was completed under the full supervision by the New York City Department of Buildings and other regulatory agencies, with full permits and with no violations for these claims.” “Tenants were never pressured to leave their apartments and the market-rate rent stabilization was – and continues to be – complied with under applicable rent guidelines,” the statement continued. “Any complaints during construction (which was completed in 2017) were evaluated and addressed promptly by the property management team. The property management team is committed to continuing to meet the needs of all residents.” Ronan Conroy says he complained to the Kushners several times, walking down to the sales office once to confront management in person. “Your strategy is to get people out, right?” Conroy recalls asking a staffer at the desk. He says the man basically shrugged, offered no dispute, then said, “We can let you out of your lease.” Frustrated and facing a big rent hike, Conroy left in early 2016. “My strong impression is they made the building as unlivable as possible so they could get everyone out of there.” (© Copyright 2018 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)
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Jared Kushner’s Family Firm Accused Of Pushing Out Tenants
Jared Kushner’s Family Firm Accused Of Pushing Out Tenants was last modified: July 16th, 2018 by Roslyn5701
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) – Online shoppers are primed for big savings as Amazon prepares to launch its fourth annual Prime Day Monday at 3 p.m. ET, promising even more discounts this year. And that’s ratcheting up the pressure on other stores and chains like Macy’s, Nordstrom, Best Buy, Walmart and Target to also roll out big promotions. At 36 hours, this year’s Amazon Prime Day is longer and more ambitious than ever. Prime members will have access to more than one million deals, including discounts on Amazon’s Alexa-enabled products, like the Echo, Fire TV and Fire Tablet. And for the first time, there are Prime Day deals at Amazon’s subsidiary, Whole Foods. “They have a lot of Amazon products in Whole Foods stores now,” said Dan Ackerman, a section editor for CNET. “They’ve got the Amazon Echos and the Dots and the little Amazon tablets in there. The discounted prices on those make them almost casual pickups on the way to the checkout counter.” The online deals apply to big ticket items, including washing machines and dishwashers, as well as smaller household goods like paper towels. Amazon started Prime Day to celebrate its 20th anniversary in 2015. It was such a success that now the other e-commerce giants are scrambling to keep up. Ackerman says the entire retail industry is feeling the pressure. “They certainly feel like they have to compete because the first year they had a lot of counter sales. They backed off for a while but this year, they’re all back – Best Buy, Targets stores.” Amazon predicts shoppers will spend $3.4 billion worldwide during the 36-hour period, making it feel like Black Friday in July. Prime Day is also a way for Amazon to keep its subscribers on board. Amazon increased the annual Prime membership by 20 percent to $119 in May 2018.
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Amazon Prime Day Puts Pressure On Other Retailers
Amazon Prime Day Puts Pressure On Other Retailers was last modified: July 16th, 2018 by ShariB74hvng
LOS ANGELES (CBSLA/AP) — Amazon is extending its annual “Prime Day” promotion to 36 hours this year and will try to lure more deal-seekers to the aisles of Whole Foods. Shoppers will have plenty of sales to choose from as other retailers offer promotions to try to take a share of the spending. This year’s sales event, which starts Monday afternoon, will be six hours longer than last year’s and will launch new products. Amazon hopes to keep Prime attractive for current and would-be subscribers after raising the annual membership fee by 20 percent to $119 and to $12.99 for the month-to-month option. Making Prime Day last even longer “ratchets up the pressure on all of retail” to roll out heavy promotions “in hopes of attracting shoppers and dollars,” said Charlie O’Shea, lead retail analyst at Moody’s. Macy’s, for instance, was promoting a “Black Friday in July” event, and eBay kicked off more than a hundred deals. Here’s a look at what’s happening this year: WHOLE FOODS IN THE MIX: The Seattle-based company is offering Prime members who spend $10 at Whole Foods from July 11-17 a $10 Amazon credit to use on Prime Day. And at its more than a dozen Amazon Books stores, discounts will expand beyond devices. IT’S LONGER: After extending the daylong event to 30 hours in 2017, this year’s Prime Day will be 36 hours long, starting at 3 p.m. ET Monday. NEW PRODUCT LAUNCHES: Several companies have agreed to launch new products on Prime Day, Amazon says. Among them, a Fingerlings unicorn doll whose horn lights up and a Delta kitchen faucet that can be turned on through Amazon’s Alexa voice assistant. PRIVATE LABEL PUSH: Amazon has been building its own brands, and it’ll be offering deals such as 25 percent off its Rivet furniture brand, which didn’t exist a year ago. Other deals include 30 percent off its Mama Bear diapers and baby products. BACK TO SCHOOL: The company is making a big push in school supplies for Prime Day. It says customers bought more pencils, pens, notebooks, glue sticks, lunchboxes and backpacks on Prime Day last year than any other day of the year. MORE COUNTRIES: Amazon has been expanding its Prime membership around the world, and four new countries will be a part of Prime Day this year: Australia, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and Singapore. Amazon disclosed for the first time this year that it had more than 100 million paid Prime members worldwide. Amazon “unboxed” several of its deals Monday morning: Amazon Devices: Prime members new to Amazon Music Unlimited can get the best deal in Amazon Music history: Six months free of the premium music streaming service with purchase of select Amazon Echo devices during Prime Day Save $20 on Fire TV Stick with Alexa Voice Remote, only $19.99 Save $110 on Toshiba 50-inch 4K Ultra HD Fire TV Edition, only $289.99 Save $30 on Echo Spot, only $99.99 Save $30 on Echo (Second Generation), only $69.99 Save $20 on Echo Dot Kids Edition, only $59.99 Save $100 on Echo Look, only $99.99 Save $60 on Amazon Cloud Cam, only $59.99 Save $75 on Ring Video Doorbell Pro, only $174 Save $30 on Fire HD8 tablet with Alexa, only $49.99 Save $30 on Fire HD 8 tablet and new Show Mode Charging Dock bundle, only $79.99 Eligible Prime members get 10% back on select Amazon devices, including Echo, Fire TV, and Kindle, when they shop on Prime Day using the Amazon Prime Rewards Visa Card or Amazon Prime Store Card Amazon Brands: Save 30% on everyday essentials from AmazonFresh, Presto!, and Solimo Save up to 50% on apparel for the whole family, including Amazon Essentials, Goodthreads, Daily Ritual, and more Save up to 30% on AmazonBasics items such as bedding, office products, cookware, and electronics accessories Save up to 30% on furniture and home décor from Rivet and Stone & Beam Fashion: Save up to 50% on athleisure shoes for men and women from top-selling brands, including adidas, New Balance, and Puma Save up to 50% on activewear from top-selling brands, including Champion, Lacoste, Russell, and Puma Save up to 40% on select denim styles for kids from Levi’s and The Children’s Place Save up to 40% on select jeans for men and women from Hudson, NYDJ, and Lucky Electronics: Premium brand 49-inch 4K Smart TV, only $438 Premium brand 55-inch 4K Smart TV, only $478 Premium brand 65-inch 4K Smart TV, only $649 Save $300 on LG V35 ThinQ, a Prime Exclusive phone, only $599.99 Save up to 30% on the Bose SoundLink Micro Bluetooth speaker Save on Bose QuietComfort 25 Headphones, only $125 Save on Sony WH-CH700N Wireless Noise-Canceling Headphones, only $98 Save 50% on Sennheiser HD 4.50 SE Wireless Noise-Canceling Headphones Save 25% on Nura Headphones Save up to 40% on select Micro SD/SD Cards and USBs Save up to 35% on select monitors, laptops, and routers Save up to 35% on PC gaming laptops, desktops, and accessories Save up to 30% on 3D printers Save $400 on the Jibo Robot Eligible Prime members get 15% back on select Samsung TVs, audio, and more on Prime Day when shopping with the Amazon Prime Rewards Visa Card or Amazon Prime Store Card Smart Home: Save up to 40% on select Smart Home products Save 40% or more on select Noon Home Smart Lighting products Save 30% or more on a smart sprinkler controller Save on Etekcity Wi-Fi Smart Plugs – works with Alexa Home & Kitchen: Save up to 30% on select furniture, mattresses, and rugs Save 30% on select Kenmore refrigerators, ranges, washers, and dryers Save on wine fridges from Kalamera Save $100 on Opal Nugget Ice Maker Save 30% or more on Anova Sous Vides Save 30% on Coffee Gator Save over 30% on the Cricut Explore Air 2 Rose bundle Save up to 40% on select cat treats and supplies Video Games: Save 25% on Microsoft Xbox One S 1TB Starter Bundle + Rare Replay, only $229.99 Save on Nintendo New 3DS XL – Super NES Edition with Super Mario Kart, only $149.99 Save on Nintendo Switch Gaming Bundle, only $299.99 Toys, Books & Baby: Save up to 40% on select outdoor toys, including select Nerf, Green Toys, and Radio Flyer products Save up to 40% on select indoor toys, puzzles, and games, including select Play-Doh, Ravensburger, and Crayola products Save 30% on select products from Melissa and Doug Save 30% on select STEM toys, including select Anki, Osmo, and Sphero products Save up to 50% on select children’s books Save up to 30% on select Fisher-Price baby products Sports & Outdoor: Save 30% or more on select Coleman camping gear Save 30% on the Traeger Renegade Elite Grill Save 30% on Blackstone 36” 4-Burner Outdoor Griddle Station Save on the Lifestraw Personal Water Filter Additional Deals from Across Amazon: IMDbPro: Save 60% on a new annual membership to IMDbPro, only $95 – the lowest price ever Virtual Dash Buttons: Prime members receive an additional 15% off their first virtual Dash Button order Subscribe & Save: Prime members receive an additional 30% off their first Subscribe & Save subscription Shop Deals from Small and Medium-Sized Businesses on Amazon This Prime Day, members around the world can shop hundreds of thousands of deals from small and medium-sized businesses selling on Amazon. From Amazon Launchpad to Amazon Exclusives and Amazon Handmade, small and medium-sized businesses on Amazon are offering more deals than ever before. Some of these deals include: Save up to 50% on Tea Forte summer teas and accessories Save 50% on 23andMe Health + Ancestry Personal Genetic Service Kit Save on the AncestryDNA Genetic Testing Kit, only $54.99 Save up to 40% on Petcube Bites Pet Camera & Treat Dispenser Save on Anker Powercore Power Banks Save up to 40% on toys and games from Mama Moon Boutique Save 20% or more on office products and furniture from Stand Steady Save 20% on select Amazon Handmade products from local artisans Save 20% on select Amazon Launchpad startup products Prime Day, created by Amazon.com Inc. in 2015 to mark its 20th anniversary, has inspired other e-commerce companies to invent their own shopping holidays. Online furniture seller Wayfair introduced Way Day in April, becoming its biggest revenue day ever. While Prime Day brings in more revenue for Amazon, too, it also helps boost its Prime memberships. It had more sign-ups during 2017’s event than any other day in the company’s history, Amazon said at the time, without providing specific numbers. (© Copyright 2018 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
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Amazon Reveals Best Deals For Prime Day
Amazon Reveals Best Deals For Prime Day was last modified: July 16th, 2018 by KeiraHutcheson
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) — As the weather heats up, so does spending. Many people will even go into debt just so they don’t miss out on the summer fun. The summer spending report from Nerdwallet found that 71-percent of parents with kids under 18 who plan on taking a vacation say they’ll put an average of $1,019 on their credit card to cover travel costs. Families with school-aged children also on average plan to charge $460 to their credit card for activities such as camp, sports, and going to the movies. You don’t have to go into debt to enjoy the summer. Consumer savings expert Andrea Woroch stopped by with some helpful tips on how to save on summer fun.
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Tips On Saving Big Bucks This Summer
Tips On Saving Big Bucks This Summer was last modified: July 14th, 2018 by EdwinaPMML
ATLANTA (AP) – The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says a popular Kellogg’s cereal has been linked to a salmonella outbreak that has infected 100 people in 33 states. The CDC announced Thursday that customers should avoid Honey Smacks, tweeting, “Do not eat this cereal.” The agency says it found salmonella in samples of Honey Smacks, which has been subject to a voluntary recall by Kellogg since mid-June. More: Honey Smacks Cereal Recalled Over Salmonella Concerns It says that regardless of expiration date, the cereal should be thrown away or returned to a retailer for a refund. The CDC says at least 30 of the people infected in the outbreak have been hospitalized. It says most people infected with salmonella develop a fever, cramps or diarrhea within 12 to 72 hours of being exposed to the bacteria. Click here for more information. (© Copyright 2018 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)
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CDC: ‘Do Not Eat This Cereal’
CDC: ‘Do Not Eat This Cereal’ was last modified: July 13th, 2018 by KristinWeinberg
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) – With the 4th of July falling on on a Wednesday this year, bargain hunters have had extra time to chase down those deals. “Retailers aren’t doing much in terms of their sales bells and whistles around July 4th,” says shopping expert Trae Bodge of Slickdeals . But don’t worry – there are sales to be had, reports CBS2’s Alex Denis. Macy’s is offering 20 percent discounts and there are deals at Home Depot, Sears, Overstock and Saks Fifth Avenue. And look for discounts in specific categories, like active wear, where shoes and apparel are expected to be discounted 40 to 55 percent. With school out for the summer, gaming deals are popular this month. “A lot of the sales are for members – members of Best Buy, Xbox, PlayStation,” Bodge says. “They’re giving away some free bundles, discounted bundles. Some really good deals to be had there.” And now is the time to stock up on back to school clothes, which should be discounted anywhere from 20 percent off to full-on clearance. “What I’m seeing are really strong apparel deals from those solid kids apparel places like Forever 21, Gymboree, Old Navy,” Bodge says. “But I would hold off on your gear like your backpacks, lunch boxes.” Those items will be marked down in August, with one exception. “My friends at Staples gave me a little heads up, there’s a really good deal at the end of the month — the last two weeks,” Bodge says. “25 percent off of backpacks, with the purchase of select school supplies.” If you’re an Amazon Prime member, take advantage of Prime Day. The exact date is usually a secret but Bodge has the inside scoop. “We think Amazon Prime Day will be around mid-month, around the 16th of July. But you didn’t hear that from me.” What should you buy then? “What we’ve seen on past prime days are sales on their proprietary devices like their Kindles, Echo Dot,” she says. If you’ve got your eye on something specific, set a deal alert on slickdeals.net so you’ll be alerted when the item you want is on sale. And finally, this may be the best deal of all: Best Friends Animal Society says all adoptable pets are free through the 4th of July. Their goal is to send home 10,000 pets in 10 days.
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Where To Find The Best Deals In July
Where To Find The Best Deals In July was last modified: July 6th, 2018 by KamBaldwin
