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After nine long years, McDonalds has finally announced the revival of the Snack Wrap, one of its most belovedand most copieddiscontinued menu items. To herald the wraps return, the brand made an entire digital archive dedicated to documenting fans fervor for the Snack Wrap. The wrap returns after a number of other fast food chains, including Burger King, Wendys, Chic-fil-A, and, most recently, Popeyes, have made their own dupes of the item in its absence. McDonalds’ attempt to reclaim its Snack Wrap dominance comes as the company continues to face difficult financial headwinds; reporting its second consecutive quarter of sales declines in its first-quarter financial report on May 1. Now, the company is betting on fans Snack Wrap nostalgia to score a boost this summer. [Photo: McDonald’s] On McDonalds’ official website, a cryptic official statement from Joe Erlinger, McDonalds USA president, simply reads, Its back. Accompanying the statement, though, is the link to a website called the Snack Wrap Files thats a wealth of Snack Wrap-based information. Per the site, the Snack Wrap will be made with McDonalds’ McCrispy Strips in two flavors: ranch or spicy. It will be available as a combo meal and, at last, it has secured a spot as a permanent menu item. The Snack Wrap Files also serves another purpose: The site, which has a simple, early web vibe, is an archive dedicated to all of the times that McDonalds fans have yearned for the Snack Wrap since 2016. [Screenshot: McDonald’s] It’s back. According to its FAQ section, the Snack Wrap Files was created to highlight the bond fans have with the Snack Wrap. The Snack Wrap was phased out nationally in 2016, but it never left fans hearts, the website reads. From countless social media posts to full-fledged petitions, they never gave up on their favorite menu item. Theyre the ones who inspired us to make its return to the menu happen. And McDonalds is dedicated to spinning that return into a dramatic, full-blown campaign. Currently, there are 10 folders on the Snack Wrap Files site, three of which are unlocked for public viewing. A countdown at the top of the page marks the time remaining before the other seven files are unlocked. In the Media Materials folder, users can find official photos of the new Snack Wrap and FAQs about its return. Under BTS, they can take a peek behind the curtain at McDonalds’ creative team poring over Snack Wrap ad materials. But The Fandom folder is where the site really shines. [Screenshot: McDonald’s] Within this section, the McDonalds team has compiled a highlight reel of fans most fervent pleas for the Snack Wraps return. Some are on the tamer side, like an email that reads, Is it true youre bringing back the Snack Wrap??!! I will be so excited!!!!!! and another sharing, In fact I am 13 weeks pregnant and my biggest craving is something I cant have. I am due July 14th, 2025. Will snack wraps be back before then? Please just give me a hint. Others take a more desperate tone. Where is the snack wrap. You guys promised me 2025, it is 2025. I do not see the snack wrap. Please get back to me, this is an important matter, reads one inquiry. When the snack wraps are dropped Im going to do a challenge where I try and eat 1,000 in a calendar year, another says. If I record myself and post it on tik tok or something will you give me a reward? [Screenshot: McDonald’s] One emailer resorted to a direct threat: I hope youre not playing with our emotions because I swear to god the people of the US will riot if you pull the rug from underneath us! Whew. In three days, 23 hours, and 40 minutes (at the time of this writing), the Snack Wrap File’ cryptic “Reaction Clips,” “Merch Concepts,” “Internal Emails,” “Promo Codes,” “Playlist,” “Voice Note,” and “Credits” folders will be unlocked.
Category:
E-Commerce
Six weeks before UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson was gunned down outside a Manhattan hotel in December, suspect Luigi Mangione mused about rebelling against “the deadly, greed fueled health insurance cartel” and said killing the executive “conveys a greedy bastard that had it coming,” prosecutors revealed Wednesday.The Manhattan district attorney’s office quoted extensively from Mangione’s handwritten diaryhighlighting his desire to kill an insurance honcho and praise for Ted Kaczynski, the Unabomberas they fight to uphold his state murder charges. They also cited a confession they say he penned “To the feds,” in which he wrote that “it had to be done.”Mangione’s lawyers want the state case thrown out, arguing in court papers that those charges and a parallel federal death penalty case amount to double jeopardy.They also want state terrorism charges dismissed, have asked for the federal case to go first and say prosecutors should be barred from using evidence collected during Mangione’s arrest, including a 9mm handgun, statements to police and the diary.Manhattan prosecutors contend that there are no double jeopardy issues because neither case has gone to trial and because the state and federal prosecutions involve different legal theories.His lawyers say that has created a “legal quagmire” that makes it “legally and logistically impossible to defend against them simultaneously.”The state charges, which carry a maximum of life in prison, allege that Mangione wanted to “intimidate or coerce a civilian population,” that is, insurance employees and investors. The federal charges allege that Mangione stalked an individual, Thompson, and do not involve terror allegations.Mangione, 27, has pleaded not guilty in both cases. No trial dates have been set.Mangione’s “intentions were obvious from his acts, but his writings serve to make those intentions explicit,” prosecutors said in Wednesday’s filing. The writings, which they sometimes described as a manifesto, “convey one clear message: that the murder of Brian Thompson was intended to bring about revolutionary change to the healthcare industry.”They quoted excerpts in which Mangione discussed options for the attack, such as bombing UnitedHealthcare’s headquarters, before deciding to target the company’s investor conference in Manhattan. He wrote about plans to “wack the CEO at the annual parasitic bean-counter convention” because it was “targeted, precise and doesn’t risk innocents.”UnitedHealthcare, the largest U.S. health insurer, “literally extracts human life force for money,” Mangione wrote, envisioning the news headline, “Insurance CEO killed at annual investors conference.”The company has said he was never a client.Mangione is due back in state court June 26, when Judge Gregory Carro is expected to rule on his request for dismissal.His lawyers asked Tuesday for his handcuffs and bulletproof vest to be removed during the hearing. They called him a “a model prisoner, a model defendant” and said the security measures would suggest to potential jurors that he is dangerous. Carro has not ruled on that.Mangione’s next federal court date is Dec. 5, a day after the one-year anniversary of Thompson’s death.Surveillance video showed a masked gunman shooting Thompson from behind as he arrived for the conference Dec. 4 at the New York Hilton Midtown. Police say “delay,” “deny” and “depose” were scrawled on the ammunition, mimicking a phrase commonly used to describe how insurers avoid paying claims.Mangione was arrested Dec. 9 at a McDonald’s in Altoona, Pennsylvania, 230 miles (about 370 kilometers) to the west, and he is being held in a federal jail in Brooklyn.Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg has called the ambush “a killing that was intended to evoke terror.”U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi announced in April that she was directing federal prosecutors to seek the death penalty for “an act of political violence” and a “premeditated, cold-blooded assassination that shocked America.”The killing and ensuing search for Mangione rattled the business community while galvanizing health insurance critics who rallied around him as a stand-in for frustrations over coverage denials and hefty bills. Supporters have flocked to his court appearances and flooded him with mail.Mangione “demonstrated in his manifesto that he was a revolutionary anarchist who would usher in a better healthcare system by killing the CEO” of one of the biggest U.S. companies, prosecutors wrote. “This brutal, cowardly murder was the mechanism that defendant chose to bring on that revolution.” Michael R. Sisak, Associated Press
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E-Commerce
Eager customers lined up outside electronics stores in Tokyo hours in advance to collect their preordered Nintendo Switch 2 video game consoles.The much anticipated Switch 2, being released around the world Thursday, is an upgrade to its eight-year-old predecessor with new social features meant to draw players into online gaming. Nintendo is counting on the Switch 2 to boost sagging sales.In the U.S., a chaotic preorder process in April left some fans frustrated after the consoles quickly sold out.In Japan, the new consoles were sold through a competitive lottery system that Nintendo said got about 2.2 million applications.Outside the official draw, some retailers offered their own lotteries to preorder the devices.Koji Takahashi was among those who missed out on the official draw but he was selected in the second round of a lottery held by a major electronics retailer in Japan.He was first in line waiting outside the store, arriving four hours ahead of its opening. He hoped to secure a limited supply of Nintendo accessories to buy along with his preordered Switch 2.“I feel very sorry for those who weren’t successful in the lottery. But I also had tough time getting this far, so I hope they forgive me!” Takahashi said.The new console comes with a larger and higher resolution screen than its predecessor, with improved processing power, offering smoother and more vivid graphics.Nintendo has said it expects to sell 15 million Switch 2 consoles for the fiscal year through March 2026.The company has promised to roll out attractive software for the Switch 2 later this year, including “The Legend of Zelda” games, a Pokemon title and a Kirby game, as well as offerings from outside software companies.Nintendo is capitalizing on the launch with the opening of a store in San Francisco and the Super Nintendo World amusement facility in Orlando, Florida, both set for this month.The Switch 2’s rollout arrives at an uncertain time for much of the gaming industry due to new tariffs implemented by U.S. President Donald Trump.In the U.S., the Switch 2’s baseline launch price is $449.99significantly higher than the original Switch’s $299 price tag.U.S. preorders for the Switch 2 were delayed for several weeks so the company could assess the potential impact of tariffs. Ayaka McGill, Associated Press
Category:
E-Commerce
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