1. Patagonia vs. Patagonia
You may have heard of Patagonia, the popular outdoor brand that many people wear as a popular fashion trend but not so much for outdoor sports. But have you heard of the other Patagonia, Anheuser-Busch InBev’s (Budweiser’s parent company) beer brand? Due to their same name, similar branding, and their launches at stores where clothing company Patagonia is typically bought, this has become the basis behind the retailer’s lawsuit against the beer brand.
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Photo by Patagonia
The retailer is suing Anheuser-Busch InBev for trademark infringement. “Many of the elements AB InBev is using to market the beer are similar to Patagonia’s branding and products, such as black down jackets with the Patagonia name on them, and reclaimed wood for fixtures on a pop-up store,” the lawsuit claims. “In short, AB has done everything possible to make it appear as though this PATAGONIA beer is sold by Patagonia.” Retailing company Patagonia has built its reputation over the last 40 years as a company “dedicated to environmental conservation” and is pushing back against those who have barked up the wrong tree.
2. Lyft Removes Bikes in 3 Major Cities
Lyft has a fleet of pedal-assist electric bikes across the U.S. and is temporarily pulling them out of New York City, San Francisco and Washington, D.C. due to their malfunctioning brakes. Motivate, the bike share operator owned by Lyft, has made the decision to pull these bikes after receiving alarming reports from riders. Several have reported injuries such as flipping over the front handlebars after experiencing a ‘stronger than expected braking force on the front wheel.’ This comes as a disadvantage for Lyft given that e-bikes makeup 15% of Motivate’s total fleet across three cities and considering that Lyft completed the Motivate acquisition last November, announcing they would be investing $100M into New York City’s e-bike expansion. According to BBC, “The assisted bikes, which are fitted with an electric motor to help people get around urban areas, will be replaced by traditional pedal-powered alternatives.
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3. Disney+ Premiere Date
The Walt Disney Co. is mingling with the video streaming service industry. Later this year, on Nov. 12 to be exact, they are releasing Disney+, their first streaming service for $6.99/month, a price half the cost of Netflix and cheaper than Amazon Prime Video. They have already mentioned deals with Samsung and Roku and a potential partnership with Apple TV. A completely ad-free platform, all the revenue will be derived from subscriptions. According to TechCrunch, “The service will be designed around Disney’s portfolio of entertainment brands — there will be separate sections for Disney animation, Pixar, Star Wars, Marvel and National Geographic… For example, Disney said that at launch that the service will include the entirety of the animation studio’s 13-film Signature collection, plus the first two Star Wars trilogies and… “Captain Marvel” and other Marvel films.” Not to mention they are planning on creating original shows. You can find the full list of programming here.
(Source: TechCrunch)