Goodwill Industries International is teaming up with Sony Pictures Entertainment for the release of the animated film, Hotel Transylvania 2, to encourage people across the United States and Canada to do their Halloween shopping at Goodwill’s more than 3,000 stores or online at shopgoodwill.com®. Goodwill and Sony Pictures unite with the message, “Be Your Own Monster,” urging consumers to make Goodwill their Halloween Headquarters for creating unique, affordable costumes -- even costumes based on one of the movie’s characters, such as Dracula, Mavis or Frank. When costume seekers shop at Goodwill, they help people in their communities get job training, earn jobs and access other community-based services. Sony Pictures Animation’s “Hotel Transylvania 2” will be released in theaters nationwide on Friday, September 25, 2015.
The partnership includes a radio and television campaign, which will join the Goodwill brand with the world of “Hotel Transylvania 2.” Characters from the film are featured in the ads, encouraging people to shop at Goodwill for Halloween. There will also be partnership events in up to 50 markets across the nation. Shoppers can support Goodwill by making it their go-to Halloween destination, and the revenues from their purchases will help fund employment services in their local communities. Visit goodwill.org/Halloween to learn more about local partnership events, to generate costume ideas and more.
To view the multimedia release go to:
http://www.multivu.com/players/English/7057251-goodwill-sony-pictures-unemployment/
When IIHS began its booster seat ratings in 2008, most models failed to consistently provide good belt fit — the main purpose of a booster. This year, all new models evaluated by the Institute provide good or acceptable fit for typical 4 to 8 year-olds in most cars, minivans or SUVs.
Out of 23 new models evaluated, 20 earn the highest rating of BEST BET, meaning they are likely to provide good fit for a 4- to 8-year-old child in almost any car, minivan or SUV. Another three models are rated GOOD BETs, meaning they provide acceptable fit in most vehicles. There are no new models in the Not Recommended category, nor are there any with the Check Fit designation, which identifies seats that may work for some children in some vehicles.
JetBlue (Nasdaq: JBLU) and Barclaycard today announced the launch of the new suite of JetBlue MasterCard credit cards, the latest complement to JetBlue’s TrueBlue loyalty program. The new JetBlue® Card features a limited-time 10,000 bonus points offer and an easy-to-earn travel rewards program. Cardmembers can earn accelerated TrueBlue points in new ways for everyday spending at restaurants and grocery stores. With the new card, cardmembers can earn award flights even faster.
“We wanted to put the award-winning JetBlue experience in our customers’ wallets,” said Jamie Perry, vice president, marketing, JetBlue. “It’s simple; customers want to earn flights more quickly. With our new card, you’re able to earn points toward your trip and get there even faster than you think.”
To view the multimedia release go to:
http://www.multivu.com/players/English/7778051-barclaycard-jetblue-card/
The Toyota Prius v is the only midsize car out of 31 evaluated to earn a good rating in the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety’s first-ever headlight ratings.
The best available headlights on 11 cars earn an acceptable rating, while nine only reach a marginal rating. Ten of the vehicles can’t be purchased with anything other than poor-rated headlights.
A vehicle’s price tag is no guarantee of decent headlights. Many of the poor-rated headlights belong to luxury vehicles.
The ability to see the road ahead, along with any pedestrians, bicyclists or obstacles, is an obvious essential for drivers. However, government standards for headlights, based on laboratory tests, allow huge variation in the amount of illumination that headlights provide in actual on-road driving. With about half of traffic deaths occurring either in the dark or in dawn or dusk conditions, improved headlights have the potential to bring about substantial reductions in fatalities.
Three out of seven large pickup trucks evaluated by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety in a new round of crash tests earn an acceptable or higher rating for occupant protection in a small overlap front crash.
IIHS evaluated two body styles of each 2016 model-year pickup — crew cab and extended cab. Crew cabs have four full doors and two full rows of seating. Extended cabs have two full front doors, two smaller rear doors and compact second-row seats.
IIHS last year decided it would test the two most popular variants of large pickups instead of just one after discovering that the Ford F-150 extended cab lacked structural countermeasures that helped the crew cab earn the top rating of good in the small overlap test. The test replicates what happens when a vehicle runs off the road and hits a tree or pole or clips another vehicle that has crossed the center line.
Ford improved the 2016 model F-150 SuperCab to clinch a good rating in the small overlap crash test, up from the 2015 model’s marginal rating. The F-150 is the only large pickup in the latest test group to earn the Institute’s top rating in the test. It joins the F-150 SuperCrew in earning a 2016 TOP SAFETY PICK award when equipped with Ford’s optional basic-rated forward collision warning system.
Vehicles that earn a basic rating for front crash prevention plus good ratings in the small overlap front, moderate overlap front, side, roof strength and head restraint evaluations qualify for TOP SAFETY PICK. To qualify for 2016 TOP SAFETY PICK+, a vehicle must earn good ratings in the five crashworthiness tests and an advanced or superior rating for front crash prevention.
Think “muscle car” performance, and images of speed and power are more likely to come to mind than crash tests and safety ratings. Because no one buys a sports car to drive in the slow lane, the best all-¬ around occupant crash protection is crucial. The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) recently put a trio of iconic sports coupes through their paces, and unlike more sedate sedans, none earns the scores needed to clinch a TOP SAFETY PICK award.
IIHS evaluated 2016 models of the Chevrolet Camaro, Dodge Challenger and Ford Mustang in the full battery of crashworthiness evaluations. The Mustang comes closest to earning TOP SAFETY PICK, while the Camaro falls shortin one category and lacks an available front crash prevention system. The Challenger is most in need of improvement.
To qualify for TOP SAFETY PICK, vehicles must earn good ratings in the small overlap front, moderate overlap front, side, roof strength and head restraint evaluations and have a basic-¬rated front crash prevention system. To qualify for the Institute’s highest award, TOP SAFETY PICK+, vehicles must earn good ratings in the five crashworthiness tests and an advanced or superior rating for front crash prevention.
The Ad Council and the Dollar General Literacy Foundation today launched new public service ads (PSAs) to support their national Finish Your Diploma campaign to provide adults with the information and encouragement needed to earn a high school equivalency diploma. The new PSAs celebrate adult learners in America and reinforce the idea that no one does it alone.
“As adults are considering finishing their diploma, often the greatest challenge is simply knowing where to go for support and having the courage to take the first step towards completing their diploma,” said Denine Torr of the Dollar General Literacy Foundation. “By coupling real stories with information about free local adult education classes and resources, we hope the new commercials will inspire and empower individuals to pursue their dreams through education.”
To view the multimedia release go to:
http://www.multivu.com/players/English/7900051-ad-council-dollar-general-finish-your-diploma/
Buckling precious cargo into a late-model vehicle has gotten a bit easier in the past year, the Institute’s LATCH ease-of-use ratings show.
IIHS launched its ratings of child seat installation hardware in vehicles in June 2015. Out of 102 vehicles rated at that time, the majority were poor or marginal. Today, a total of 170 current models have been evaluated, and most are good or acceptable. Three models — the Audi Q7, Lexus RX and Toyota Prius — earn the top rating of good+, a distinction that no vehicle achieved last year.
A properly installed, age-appropriate child restraint can protect a child much better in a crash than a safety belt alone. LATCH, which stands for Lower Anchors and Tethers for Children, is intended to make it easier for caregivers to install child restraints properly. Child restraints installed with LATCH are more likely to be put in correctly than restraints installed using the vehicle safety belt, IIHS research has shown.
Even with LATCH, installation errors are common. The Institute’s ratings are based on key ease-of-use criteria that have been shown to minimize mistakes.
FedEx Office and eBay have teamed up to bring the eBay Valet Drop-Off Program to more than 1,600 FedEx Office retail stores, making it easier for consumers to sell items online and earn money. With kids back in school and the holiday season right around the corner, now is the perfect time to clear the home of items no longer needed, such as electronics, small appliances, sporting goods and more to make some extra money. According to a recent survey by the National Retail Federation, the average household has more than 50 extra or unused items worth more than $3,000, if sold on eBay.
The eBay Valet Drop-Off Program is designed to make selling items as simple as possible. Customers bring their items to the nearest participating FedEx Office location. Once in the store, trained FedEx Office team members can help set up an eBay account from an in-store tablet or log in to an existing account. They will then vet items to ensure they can be sold on eBay. FedEx Office then packs and ships items to the nearest eBay Valet processing center where they will be listed and sold. Once the item sells, customers receive payment via PayPal, with updates and notifications throughout the process.
To view the multimedia release go to:
http://www.multivu.com/players/English/7910351-fedex-office-ebay-valet-drop-off-program/
Drivers of late-model pickup trucks are likely to find themselves squinting into the darkness or temporarily blinding other drivers, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety's latest headlight ratings show.
All four small pickups evaluated are available only with headlights that earn a poor rating. The same goes for 3 out of 7 large pickups. Only one large pickup, the Honda Ridgeline, is available with good-rated headlights, though all but the most expensive trim levels come with poor ones.
Pickups are the third vehicle category to be put through the IIHS headlight evaluations. Midsize cars were the first in March, followed by small SUVs in July.
IIHS launched its headlight ratings after finding that government standards based on laboratory tests allow for huge variation in the amount of illumination headlights provide in on-road driving. In the Institute's evaluations, engineers measure how far light is projected from a vehicle's low beams and high beams as the vehicle travels straight and on curves. Glare from low beams for oncoming drivers also is measured.
Consumers who choose a 2017 TOP SAFETY PICK+ award winner shouldn’t have trouble seeing the road on nighttime drives. Good or acceptable ratings in the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety’s new headlight evaluations set the latest crop of qualifiers apart. Thirty-eight models earn the “plus” accolade, and 44 earn TOP SAFETY PICK.
IIHS toughened the criteria for TOP SAFETY PICK+ to reflect new headlight evaluations launched in 2016. The recognition program is meant to encourage manufacturers to offer state-of-the-art protection for people in crashes, along with features that help drivers avoid crashes in the first place. In addition to good or acceptable headlights, the latter includes automatic braking technology, which has been part of the criteria since 2015.
For both awards, models must earn good ratings in the Institute’s small overlap front, moderate overlap front, side, roof strength and head restraint tests, as well as an advanced or superior rating for front crash prevention with standard or optional autobrake. Headlights are factored in only for the top award.
Two all-electric vehicles fall short of meeting the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety’s awards criteria, but consumers who want to minimize gas consumption while also prioritizing safety can choose from two plug-in hybrids that earn the 2017 TOP SAFETY PICK+ award.
The two recently evaluated all-electric models are the 2017 Tesla Model S and the 2017 BMW i3. The plug-in hybrid models are the Chevrolet Volt, whose award was announced in December, and the Toyota Prius Prime.
To qualify for the 2017 TOP SAFETY PICK award, a vehicle must earn good ratings in all five crashworthiness evaluations — small overlap front, moderate overlap front, side, roof strength and head restraints — and come with a front crash prevention system that earns an advanced or superior rating. The “plus” is awarded to vehicles that meet all those criteria and also come with good or acceptable headlights.
