While Samsung’s Galaxy Note 7 smartphones still haven’t officially been recalled in the United States, all over the world, people are continuing to use their brand-new phones, at least until Samsung is able to get a replacement Note 7 into their hands. To keep these stubborn customers from fiery disaster, the company announced a software update in South Korea that could hit other countries and might be involuntary: users won’t be able to fully charge their batteries. [More]
bad timing
Tata Motors In India Decides To Rename New Hatchback Called Zica
By 2.3.16
“Zica” seemed like such a nice name for a new zippy hatchback from India’s Tata Motors. It’s a cute name that isn’t (as far as we know) secretly a swear word in any of the countries where it would be marketed, and is an abbreviation for “zippy car.” Then the World Health Organization declared the mosquito-borne virus to be a global health emergency, and it may have been then that the company realized that this problem would not be going away. [More]
Couple Says Uber Driver Left Woman Stranded On NYC Sidewalk While She Was In Labor, Still Charged Her $13
By 1.12.16
If there’s one time in your life when you could really use a lift somewhere, it’s got to be when you’re preparing to birth a human being. But can an Uber driver who may be adverse to transporting a person in labor just leave you hanging? That’s what happened to one couple in New York City, who say that after the pregnant woman vomited on the sidewalk, their driver refused to give them a ride to the hospital… and charged $13 for the privilege of being stranded. [More]
FedEx Truck Crashes In Georgia, Spilling Packages On Highway
By 12.17.14
Yesterday morning, a FedEx tractor-trailer crashed along a highway, holding up traffic and scattering packages at a busy time of year. No, this is not a rerun from Monday, when the same thing happened in New Jersey on FedEx’s biggest shipping day of the year. This crash occurred in Georgia, and the truck was carrying packages that contained regular consumer goods as well as grapefruit and consumer goods. [More]
FedEx Truck Rollover Spills Packages On New Jersey Highway
By 12.16.14
Yesterday was the busiest shipping day of the entire year for the U.S. Postal Service and for FedEx, which could have made a tractor-trailer accident that happened early on Monday morning in New Jersey even more disastrous. While the driver sustained only minor injuries, the accident spilled packages across the highway and affected traffic for the rest of the morning. [More]
British Airways Apologizes For Bad Timing Of Underwater “Escape To Indian Ocean” Ad
By 3.28.14
While it’s not as bad as deliberately capitalizing on tragedy to market something, British Airways is feeling the heat for some very bad timing after a London man spotted an ad for the airline encouraging travelers to “escape the commute and discover the Indian Ocean” over an underwater shot. [More]
EA Server Hacked, Websites Replaced By Phishing Scam
By 3.20.14
From the Mass Effect 3 debacle to last year’s disastrous SimCity launch, things always seem to go badly for video game goliath Electronic Arts around the time of our Worst Company In America contest; perhaps that’s why EA is the two-time reigning champ. The latest gaffe involves a hacked EA web server that appears to have been used by scammers in an attempt to steal folks’ Apple ID credentials. [More]
Time Warner Cable Customers Lose Signal During Super Bowl
By 2.3.14
“Whatever you are passionate about, Time Warner Cable invents ways for you to enjoy it even better,” Time Warner Cable declares in commercials that run for its subscribers. Unless you’re passionate about professional football, live near Los Angeles and you’re a Time Warner customer still using a standard-definition TV. Then you had to scramble for an antenna during the second quarter of the game. [LA Times] [More]
Amazon Marks The Passing Of James Gandolfini By Trying To Sell Sopranos DVDs
By 6.19.13
As you have probably already heard by now, actor James Gandolfini has sadly and suddenly passed away at the age of 51. And to add just the right hint of commercialism to this tragic news, Amazon’s Facebook feed was there to remind everyone they can remember the late actor by purchasing DVD collections of The Sopranos. [More]
KFC Thailand: Sorry We Told You To Order Chicken During Tsunami Scare
By 4.12.12
While people were terrified during Wednesday’s earthquake, KFC Thailand decided it was a good idea to remind them that nothing eases the fear of being hit with a potentially-devastating tsunami like a bucket of chicken. Yeah, that didn’t go over so well. [More]
Nurse Laid Off In The Middle Of Surgery
By 4.14.09
When Dean Health System in Madison, Wisconsin announced last week that it “planned to ‘immediately’ lay off 90 employees,” it wasn’t kidding around. One of them was a nurse who was pulled out of surgery to be told the news.
