 | | | | This is your Marketplace Watchdog for Friday, August 16, 2024.
By: Jenny Cowley | | |  | | | Does signing up for Disney+ waive your rights to sue the entertainment company — ever? | Does signing up for Disney's popular streaming service mean you agree to never sue the entertainment giant over anything, ever?
That is what Disney argues in a wrongful death lawsuit involving a 42-year-old New York doctor who her family claims had a fatal allergic reaction after eating at an Irish pub in Walt Disney World in October.
Disney is asking a Florida court to dismiss a lawsuit brought against it by Jeffrey Piccolo, the husband of Kanokporn Tangsuan, a family medicine specialist based in Long Island.
The company argues Piccolo had agreed to settle any lawsuits against Disney out of court through the arbitration process when he signed up for a one-month trial of Disney+ in 2019 and acknowledged that he had reviewed the fine print.
"The Terms of Use, which were provided with the Subscriber Agreement, include a binding arbitration clause," the company wrote in its motion. "The first page of the Subscriber Agreement states, in all capital letters, that 'any dispute between You and Us, Except for Small Claims, is subject to a class action waiver and must be resolved by individual binding arbitration.'"
Disney also notes in its response that Piccolo agreed to a similar arbitration provision when he created an account on Disney's website and app ahead of the ill-fated theme park visit.
But Piccolo's lawyer, in a response filed earlier this month, argued that it was "absurd" to believe that the more than 150 million subscribers to Disney+ have waived all rights to sue the company and its affiliates in perpetuity — even if their case has nothing to do with the popular streaming service. Read more | | | | |  | | | Borrow your friend’s Costco membership? | Password-sharing types, beware: Costco is cracking down on people who borrow membership cards from friends and family by testing a new membership-scanning system in several Canadian markets.
The scanners, which were announced last week, are set up at Costco warehouse entrances in Ottawa, Edmonton, Regina and B.C.'s Lower Mainland, a company representative confirmed to CBC News.
The new system will be expanded to other stores. The representative couldn't confirm whether it would extend to all Costco locations in Canada.
Members will have to scan their digital or physical membership passes to enter the store. If your membership card doesn't have a photo, you need to be prepared to show photo ID, says the company's website.
Guests are still allowed, but only if they're accompanied by someone who holds a valid Costco membership. There will be attendants at the door.
Costco has 108 locations across Canada, according to its website, with a presence in every province except Prince Edward Island. Read more | | | | |  | | | It took PHAC nearly a year to link plant-based milk Listeria cases | The Public Health Agency of Canada says it was only after multiple Listeria cases emerged in Ontario in June that it recognized a broader outbreak that had started back in August 2023.
Questions have swirled around why it took nearly a year for the Canadian Food Inspection Agency to announce a national recall of several Silk and Great Value plant-based milk products on July 8.
The federal agency says it became aware of two genetically related cases of listeriosis — the illness caused by Listeria bacteria — in September 2023, but knew of no common food exposure.
PHAC spokesperson Anna Maddison says it was only when several cases in Ontario were reported in June 2024 and a provincial investigation was launched that the connection was made.
There have been three deaths in Ontario linked to the outbreak, which has also infected individuals in Quebec, Nova Scotia and Alberta. Read more | | | | | Marketplace needs your help! | | | | |  | | | Do you donate used clothing and home goods to charity, and ever wonder where they end up? If you have a passion for giving items a second life, we want to hear from you. Email us, marketplace@cbc.ca | | | | |  | | | Are you on the lookout for the latest in business news? You'll want to subscribe to this newsletter too.
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