1. Penny Production Discontinued
Turns out, the U.S. government lost $69M in penny production last year. Apparently, it costs the government 1.5 cents to make a penny and 7 cents to make a nickel. However, Zinc, the company that produces 97% of these coins, banked 3x as much in profits last year. Now, there is an ongoing debate as to whether Abe Lincoln needs to go. According to a poll, the American public feels attached to the penny and a lot of us don’t want to see it leave the bottom of our purses or sidewalks anytime soon. Currently, scientists are working to develop a new formula to drive down coin production costs.
(Source: The Hustle)
2. Amazon Uses Snail Mail
It’s official. Toys ‘R’ Us has shut down all of its U.S. stores, unable to resurface from bankruptcy. Toys ‘R’ Us was a staple during the holidays, with their own “Big Book” catalog of toys. Amazon is stepping in to fill the hole in our childhood hearts. Amazon is planning to publish their own holiday toy catalog that will be (snail) mailed to millions of U.S. households and handed out at Whole Foods Market locations during the upcoming 2018-2019 holiday season.
(Source: Bloomberg)
3. Netflix Makes a Few Changes
Netflix is increasing their pricing and ditching user reviews. Don’t worry though, Canada is the only one getting the increase in price and it’s a test market for premium services. Ultra, the premium service, will provide exclusive access to HDR (high dynamic range) content and have the ability to stream up to four different screens. Perfect for those who still use their parents’ Netflix account.
They’re also doing away with user reviews — the familiar 5-star ranking system. Netflix has been weaning users off of the crowdsourced rating system for a while now. Back in April of last year, the site dumped the familiar five-star rating system in favor of the more straightforward thumbs up/down in an attempt to offer a more personalized recommendation system.
(Source: TechCrunch & Mashable)
