Fox News is set to announce today that it will offer Fox Nation, a stand-alone subscription service available without a cable package.
The streaming service, expected to start by the end of the year, would focus primarily on right-leaning commentary, with original shows and cameos by popular personalities. It would not overlap with Fox News’ 24-hour cable broadcast because of the channel’s contractual agreements with cable operators.
Instead, the network is planning to develop hours of new daily programming with a mostly fresh slate of anchors and commentators. The network was still discussing the cost of a subscription.
Seating charts matter at some tech companies
If you want to understand the priorities of a technology company, first look at the seating chart.
At Google’s Silicon Valley headquarters, the chief executive now shares a floor with Google Brain, a research lab dedicated to artificial intelligence. When Facebook created its own AI lab, it temporarily gave AI researchers desks next to the conference room where its chief executive and founder holds his meetings.
A growing number of tech companies are pushing research labs and other far-reaching engineering efforts closer to the boss. The point is unmistakable: What they are doing matters to the CEO.
Minnesota’s $5 billion case heads to trial
MINNEAPOLIS >> Minnesota officials will soon try to convince a jury that manufacturer 3M Co. should pay the state $5 billion to help clean up environmental damage that the state alleges was caused by pollutants the company dumped for decades.
The long-awaited trial begins today in Minneapolis. Experts say it could have wide-reaching implications if the state succeeds, in part because 3M and other companies legally dumped the chemicals for years in and outside Minnesota.
The case focuses on the company’s disposal of chemicals once used to make Scotchgard fabric protector and other products. The company denies it did anything wrong or illegal.
The state alleges the chemicals damaged Minnesota’s natural resources, including more than 100 miles of the Mississippi River, and contaminated drinking water, harmed wildlife and posed a threat to human health.
Lawsuit against Uber gets class-action status
A federal lawsuit alleging that Uber stiffed its drivers on fare money has received class certification, allowing it to include thousands of drivers nationwide who did not sign an arbitration agreement with the San Francisco company.
The breach-of-contract lawsuit, filed in May in U.S. District Court in San Francisco, alleges that when Uber implemented a feature called “upfront pricing” in August 2016, it didn’t pay drivers their fair share.
Previously, the cost of Uber rides was calculated based on factors such as miles traveled and time. Passengers were charged accordingly at the end of the ride, and Uber passed along 80 percent of the fare to drivers, keeping 20 percent for itself.
The lawsuit alleges that when Uber introduced upfront pricing, it quoted and charged passengers a higher fare upfront, but continued to pay drivers based on previous calculations, which resulted in drivers receiving less than 80 percent of the total fare.
Uber did not respond to a request for comment.
ON THE MOVE
The U.S. secretary of commerce has appointed East-West Center President Richard R. Vuylsteke to the Hawaii Pacific Export Council. The council is a nonprofit organization dedicated to providing assistance and mentoring to local businesses expanding to international markets.
MDX Hawaii, a network of health care providers that serves more than 28,000 Medicare Advantage patients and has more than 640 primary care physicians in Hawaii, recognized two PCPs in Honolulu with the “Excellence in Kupuna Care” award. The two are Dr. Jinichi Tokeshi (gold winner) and Dr. Man Kwan Wong (silver winner). Tokeshi and Wong received the top-performing physicians awards due to keeping patients healthy and out of the emergency room.
