Paramount Investors Shouldn't Back Shari Redstone as Director, ISS Says
Institutional Shareholder Services told clients to not support the reelection of four Paramount Global directors, including Shari Redstone.
The proxy adviser said the no votes were warranted because the directors had allowed the company to maintain a 'problematic capital structure.' ISS recommended shareholders vote against three of the directors who serve on the compensation committee because it has issues with Paramount's executive pay plans.
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The Verge
23 minutes ago
- The Verge
DJI ‘remains committed to the US market' as shelves go bare of drones
Is DJI exiting the US drone market? The company says no — but it would not explain to The Verge what has changed such that it can't even keep a single drone on shelves. When I walked into my local Best Buy store today, June 24th, there were zero DJI drones available to purchase. There wasn't even an empty spot for each drone to go. The entire DJI aisle had been swept clean of price tags, lockers, and products — save a handful of motorized gimbals, action cameras, a single lone RC controller, and an almost empty premium endcap spot where a flagship drone would normally go. 'We're not really carrying DJI drones anymore because of the US-China thing,' a store employee told me. Best Buy is not alone. DJI's own US webstore no longer has any drones in stock, as DroneDJ reported Monday. Despite DJI having an official presence on Amazon, all remaining drones there are sold by third parties with low or unknown quantities of stock. Nor will Best Buy's website be much more help than its physical store: As of Tuesday, its only remaining DJI drones are the last-gen Mavic 3 Pro, priced at $3,890, a refurbished version of that same Mavic 3 Pro, and a refurbished version of the 2022 DJI Avata. DJI has already released successors for both. Even Adorama and B&H, the specialty camera stores, appear to be running low on late-model DJI drones. As of Tuesday, most current-gen drones were listed as 'temporarily on backorder' or 'temporarily out of stock,' save this specific model of the DJI Air 3S, these two specific models of the DJI Flip, and some variants of the budget DJI Neo. What's going on? DJI spokesperson Daisy Kong shared the same explanation DJI's been sharing for the past eight months, accusing US Customs of unfairly scrutinizing its drone imports. Here's the latest version: DJI remains committed to the US market. As we've previously shared, DJI has been working with U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to resolve a custom-related misunderstanding. Unfortunately, this has impacted our ability to stock and import drones and parts. We understand the frustration among our customers, but remain hopeful that this will be resolved. When we asked DJI whether any other factor might be responsible — like the US's tariffs on China, or China's own export controls that have reportedly seen drone component prices triple for US buyers — the company had no further comment. Companies like DJI have been wary of blaming either country's leaders. In October 2024, DJI told its partners the 'misunderstanding' was that US Customs and Border Protection had citing the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA) as a reason to stop DJI drones from being imported into the United States, following reports that DJI allegedly provided drones to the Chinese government so it could conduct surveillance of Uyghurs. (The Verge has not independently confirmed those reports, DJI has denied it manufactures anything in Xinjiang where China employs forced labor, and DJI is not a listed entity under the UFLPA.) It's worth noting we've only ever heard DJI's side of that story, though: to our knowledge, US Customs and Border Protection has never commented on blocking DJI's drone imports. CBP didn't respond to The Verge's request for comment last year, and it didn't immediately have a response today. Best Buy denied to The Verge that it is no longer carrying DJI drones, without offering any further explanation. A company spokesperson, responding anonymously from Best Buy's press email address, did not provide a name when we asked. If DJI did decide to proactively exit the US drone market, or if Best Buy did decide to proactively cut ties, it wouldn't be all that surprising. The company has less than six months before a de facto ban on all its new products entering the United States, unless it can convince the US government to 1) audit the company, and 2) get that audit to positively confirm that the dronemaker doesn't pose a national security threat. That's a very high bar. In February, DJI's head of public policy suggested that in the event of a US ban, DJI could continue to sell current products in the US while it offers new products elsewhere, in an interview with The Verge. But that is already happening ahead of a potential ban. In May, the company skipped the US with its most advanced drone yet, the Mavic 4 Pro. In addition to drones themselves, DJI's support website is now warning that it may take 60-90 days for repairs. And in May, we reported how DJI's back-to-back price hikes took the popular Osmo Pocket 3 camera from $519 to $799 in just two months. There, DJI was willing to say that US-China tariffs were 'among the key considerations.'
Skift
23 minutes ago
- Skift
Geopolitics, Inflation, Staffing: Incentive Planners Share Their Top Pain Points and Solutions
Incentive experts stress the importance of a Plan B and C as the geopolitical landscape shifts and costs continue to skyrocket. Incentive planners play the role of the middle man between their clients/senior management and their attendees — with both groups having high expectations for each year's trip. Despite tight budgets (some having remained the same since 2019), planners are expected to design an experience that will excite even the most seasoned winners. Now there's the added stress from new government policies such as tariffs andthe fact that a third of industry companies are struggling to find talented workers, according to research from the Incentive Research Foundation. So it's no surprise that the room was packed and the frustration level high during a discussion of 'pain points' at the IRF Invitational at AVA Resort Cancun in early June. The panel featured Jeremy Bielski, vice president of sales, ITA Group; Rachel McInnis, vice president, solution strategy, Maritz; and Janielle Peacock, director experiences & learning, RDV Corporation, and was moderated by Melissa Van Dyke, senior vice president, integrated marketing and innovation, Creative Group. Panelists at the IRF Invitational: Rachel McInnis, vice president, solution strategy, Maritz; Janielle Peacock, director experiences & learning, RDV Corporation; Jeremy Bielski, vice president of sales, ITA Group, with moderator Melissa Van Dyke, senior vice president, integrated marketing and innovation, Creative Group Following are the top four pain points identified by the group: 1. Safety and Security Whether a company works with its own internal security experts or hires an outside firm, destination and attendee safety concerns are heightened due to the geopolitical climate in the U.S. and around the world. ITA's Bielski said his company's security partner helps provide context to what everyone is hearing in the news. 'They're in the trenches globally and they understand what's going on,' he said. 'We have them come in pretty early on and do a risk assessment of every destination we're looking at. It gives a sense of security and trust to the client to know that their well-being and the well-being of their participants will be taken care of.' Building partnerships with hotel brands is key to being able to pivot if there's a need to change destinations, along with including force majeure protection at the contracting stage. 2. Impact of Tariffs The incentive merchandise industry has had to quickly adjust to the threat that tariffs will impact both pricing and availability. The key, panelists said, is to have a wide range of choices, so that if there are certain items that are impacted, recipients can still find something of the same value. More companies are turning to local vendors for on-site gifting, a strategy that the IRF practiced at its final evening event, where attendees were given 'fun money' to shop at a marketplace of goods from Mexican artists and vendors. 3. Crippling Costs 'If you have the same budget in 2025 that you had in 2019, your costs are 23% higher for travel,' said Van Dyke. But a 23% degradation in the experience is not an option. 'How do we start to look at these programs and make the best decisions with rising costs and inelastic budgets?' she said. One option is to increase the perceived value of the experience without increasing hard costs. 'Focus on things like access, or status,' she said. 'Who gets the priority seating at an event? Who gets first access to redeem their reward? Those are things that you can add without adding a whole lot of cost to a program.' Another strategy would be to add a meet-and-greet if the program includes an entertainer. 'That would add a little bit of value and maybe not impact the cost, depending on the relationship you may have with the vendor,' she said. Other cost-cutting suggestions included: • Cutting out one day's hosted activities • Adding more free time, which IRF research has shown is a top priority for incentive attendees • Cutting the number of hosted meals • Doing away with on-site gifting • Having attendees arrange their own transfers • Capping air credits so that attendees cover the cost of their own upgrades • Cutting lavish entertainment and relying more on background playlists • Replacing signature cocktails with beer and wine, or using drink tickets. 4. Staffing Concerns IRF research has found that a third of incentive planners are concerned about staffing. Most people don't begin their careers thinking they want to be an incentive planner, so the first step, the panel said, is to grow awareness of the industry. The two major industry associations, the IRF and the Society for Incentive Travel Excellence, have created various initiatives such as podcasts to attract young talent to the industry. SITE's Texas chapter brings hoteliers and planners together with hospitality students and represents the industry at job fairs.
Forbes
24 minutes ago
- Forbes
Minnesota Timberwolves' $1.5 Billion Sale Approved By NBA
A $1.5 billion deal for former MLB star Alex Rodriguez and e-commerce mogul Marc Lore to purchase the Minnesota Timberwolves was approved by the NBA on Tuesday, following a yearslong dispute with former owner and billionaire Glen Taylor. Billionaire Glen Taylor backed out of an earlier agreement to sell the team, leading to a ... More months-long arbitration process. Getty Images The NBA Board of Governors unanimously approved the sale of the controlling interests in the Timberwolves and the WNBA's Minnesota Lynx from Taylor to Lore and Rodriguez, with the transaction expected to close later this week, the NBA announced. Rodriguez and Lore, the Wonder Group's chief executive, submitted a $1.5 billion bid for the Timberwolves in April 2021 with financial backing from Dyal Capital Partners, a private equity firm linked to former Google CEO Eric Schmidt. Taylor backed out of the deal in March 2024 and claimed Lore and Rodriguez missed a deadline to submit a final payment for the Timberwolves and Lynx and other terms of their agreement, though Lore and Rodriguez disputed this and said they submitted paperwork for the deal ahead of the deadline. An arbitration panel ruled in favor of Rodriguez and Lore in February, requiring Taylor to sell the franchises. Taylor has a fortune valued at $2.9 billion, making him the 1,302nd-wealthiest person in the world, according to Forbes' latest estimates. We valued the Timberwolves as the 28th-most valuable NBA franchise in October 2024, ranking 28th at a $3.1 billion valuation—more than double the amount agreed to in the 2021 deal. Surprising Fact Billionaire Michael Bloomberg reportedly agreed to join the group to purchase the Timberwolves as they invested an additional $600 million in the team in June 2024, though it's not immediately clear how much Bloomberg contributed to the investment or how much of the team he would own. A spokesperson for Bloomberg declined to comment to Forbes at the time. A deal transferring ownership of the Timberwolves and Lynx to Rodriguez and Lore follows failed rounds of mediation. Rodriguez, a three-time MLB MVP, and Lore initially purchased a 40% stake and planned to purchase an additional 40% stake by a deadline set for March 2024. Taylor released a statement just before the deadline, claiming the prospective buyers lacked the money to complete the deal and failed to meet unspecified terms of the agreement. At the time, Taylor said the Timberwolves and Lynx were 'no longer for sale,' as Rodriguez and Lore argued money to acquire the franchises was available. Forbes Timberwolves Ownership Fight Pits Alex Rodriguez Against Billionaire During Generational Playoff Run: Here's What To Know By Brian Bushard Forbes Billionaire Michael Bloomberg Reportedly Joining Timberwolves Ownership Bid With Alex Rodriguez—Amid Messy Dispute By Ty Roush
