Bonita Springs residents alarmed after car break-insLee Deputies work to track down transient sex offenders who fail to register
BONITA SPRINGS Bonita Springs residents alarmed after car break-ins A Bonita Springs homeowner is sleeping with one eye open after her social security card was stolen from her car, an incident caught on video.
LEE COUNTY Lee Deputies work to track down transient sex offenders who fail to register WINK News Anchor Corey Lazar goes on patrol with Lee County Deputies in search of transient sex offenders who don’t register.
FORT MYERS Exclusive: Florida Warriors president talks misunderstanding with city On Friday, the president of Florida Warriors Hockey got a letter saying that starting July 1, his program’s rink access at the Fort Myers Skatium would be cut from 48 hours a month to only eight hours a month.
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) 3 law officers killed, 5 others wounded trying to serve warrant in North Carolina, authorities say Three law enforcement officers serving a warrant for a felon wanted for possessing a firearm were killed and five other officers were wounded Monday in a shootout at a Charlotte, North Carolina, home, police said.
CAPE CORAL Massive fire leaves Cape Coral businesses in shambles Several fire rescue trucks are responding to a structure fire at a commercial building in Cape Coral.
NORTH FORT MYERS North Fort Myers residents concerned over abandoned boat A day out in the water turned into an alarming discovery for one North Fort Myers family.
FORT MYERS Fort Myers first responders stress safety after rollover crash Fort Myers fire department officials are pointing to safety and awareness following a recent rollover crash on Palm Beach Blvd. and Oasis Way.
NAPLES FSU pitcher Jacob Marlowe’s determined heart is on the mound Former Barron Collier ace, now FSU pitcher Jacob Marlowe is recovering from two open heart surgeries in five days.
Contrasting Lee, Collier and Charlotte homicide rates to nationwide numbers The Wall Street Journal says nationwide homicide rates have dropped by 20% compared to the numbers from 2023.
New program to make life more manageable for Parkinson’s patients A new program, backed by research, was created using the power of spin cycling to redefine the fight against Parkinson’s.
Medicaid class action gets go-ahead A federal judge has cleared the way for a class-action lawsuit that alleges Florida did not properly inform people before dropping them from the Medicaid program after a COVID-19 public health emergency ended.
FORT MYERS New downtown Fort Myers parking options coming soon Two new spots are coming for you to park on nights and weekends in downtown Fort Myers, but you’ll still have to pay.
LEHIGH ACRES Caught on Camera: Family ‘sucker-punched’ in Lehigh Acres brawl A woman is speaking out about a conflict she was involved in at Barefoot Lake.
Miracle Moment: Christina Soriero Doctors diagnosed 22-year-old Christina Soriero with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma when she was just 18. A time in her life when the only thing she should have been dealing with was senioritis and getting ready for life after high school.
DeSantis signs bill impacting new mothers and jury duty Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has signed a bill that will impact new mothers and their eligibility to serve on jury duty.
BONITA SPRINGS Bonita Springs residents alarmed after car break-ins A Bonita Springs homeowner is sleeping with one eye open after her social security card was stolen from her car, an incident caught on video.
LEE COUNTY Lee Deputies work to track down transient sex offenders who fail to register WINK News Anchor Corey Lazar goes on patrol with Lee County Deputies in search of transient sex offenders who don’t register.
FORT MYERS Exclusive: Florida Warriors president talks misunderstanding with city On Friday, the president of Florida Warriors Hockey got a letter saying that starting July 1, his program’s rink access at the Fort Myers Skatium would be cut from 48 hours a month to only eight hours a month.
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) 3 law officers killed, 5 others wounded trying to serve warrant in North Carolina, authorities say Three law enforcement officers serving a warrant for a felon wanted for possessing a firearm were killed and five other officers were wounded Monday in a shootout at a Charlotte, North Carolina, home, police said.
CAPE CORAL Massive fire leaves Cape Coral businesses in shambles Several fire rescue trucks are responding to a structure fire at a commercial building in Cape Coral.
NORTH FORT MYERS North Fort Myers residents concerned over abandoned boat A day out in the water turned into an alarming discovery for one North Fort Myers family.
FORT MYERS Fort Myers first responders stress safety after rollover crash Fort Myers fire department officials are pointing to safety and awareness following a recent rollover crash on Palm Beach Blvd. and Oasis Way.
NAPLES FSU pitcher Jacob Marlowe’s determined heart is on the mound Former Barron Collier ace, now FSU pitcher Jacob Marlowe is recovering from two open heart surgeries in five days.
Contrasting Lee, Collier and Charlotte homicide rates to nationwide numbers The Wall Street Journal says nationwide homicide rates have dropped by 20% compared to the numbers from 2023.
New program to make life more manageable for Parkinson’s patients A new program, backed by research, was created using the power of spin cycling to redefine the fight against Parkinson’s.
Medicaid class action gets go-ahead A federal judge has cleared the way for a class-action lawsuit that alleges Florida did not properly inform people before dropping them from the Medicaid program after a COVID-19 public health emergency ended.
FORT MYERS New downtown Fort Myers parking options coming soon Two new spots are coming for you to park on nights and weekends in downtown Fort Myers, but you’ll still have to pay.
LEHIGH ACRES Caught on Camera: Family ‘sucker-punched’ in Lehigh Acres brawl A woman is speaking out about a conflict she was involved in at Barefoot Lake.
Miracle Moment: Christina Soriero Doctors diagnosed 22-year-old Christina Soriero with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma when she was just 18. A time in her life when the only thing she should have been dealing with was senioritis and getting ready for life after high school.
DeSantis signs bill impacting new mothers and jury duty Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has signed a bill that will impact new mothers and their eligibility to serve on jury duty.
Photo by AP. When it comes to credit card rewards, it’s not all about gas, groceries and restaurants anymore. Issuers are moving beyond suburban staples to include millennial-friendly categories such as transit and streaming subscriptions. The trend toward streaming rewards, in particular, is hard to miss, with cards from American Express, Chase and Wells Fargo now featuring streaming as a bonus category. But what’s behind this explosion? For starters, streaming is wildly popular. As of 2017, more than half of U.S. households subscribed to paid video-streaming services, according to Deloitte’s digital media trends survey . But experts say it’s also about issuers forging early connections with younger consumers and ensuring that they remain customers. “The strategy is simple: If a consumer opens a credit card when young, the (issuer) can build a long-term relationship with the consumer,” says Logan Allec, a CPA and founder of the financial blog Money Done Right . MEETING PEOPLE WHERE THEY’RE SPENDING The Deloitte study notes the percentage of U.S. households subscribing to a paid streaming video service grew from 10% in 2009 to 55% in 2017 — a 450% increase. Consumers subscribe to an average of three such services. Issuers have taken notice. Wells Fargo made a splash last summer, revamping the Wells Fargo Propel American Express, which now earns triple points back per dollar spent on eligible streaming services. In May 2019, the Blue Cash Preferred Card from American Express underwent a makeover, adding select U.S. streaming services as a 6% cash-back category. The following month, the Chase Freedom entered the streaming fray. The card earns 5% cash back in bonus categories that rotate each quarter, on up to $1,500 in spending per quarter. (You must opt in to the bonus categories each quarter; all other purchases earn 1% back.) From July 1 to Sept. 30, 2019, one of those bonus categories is select streaming services. Kunal Madhok , vice president of U.S. consumer lending and acquisition at American Express, noted via email that AmEx research found that a segment of millennials were spending more on “day-to-day” costs like commuting and streaming compared with five years ago. So the Blue Cash Preferred was reworked to reward cardholders more heavily for these types of costs. “The card is designed to give people the most cash back on the things they value and spend frequently on, now including quality time at home streaming their favorite show,” Madhok said. Of course, your monthly Netflix bill likely represents only a fraction of your household budget , so don’t expect a boatload of rewards from this category alone. Say your family spends $15.99 per month on Netflix Premium, $14.99 per month on a Spotify Family plan and $5.99 per month on Hulu, for a total of $443.64 per year. If you earn 6% cash back on these services by paying for them with the Blue Cash Preferred Card from American Express, that’s just $26.62 in rewards per year . And that doesn’t take into account the card’s $95 annual fee. When choosing any rewards card, look for categories that match your spending enough to offset that cost. BUILDING RELATIONSHIPS WITH YOUNGER SPENDERS Per the Deloitte survey, 70% of Gen Z households (ages 14 to 20) had a streaming subscription in 2017, as did 68% of millennial households (ages 21 to 34). Experts say credit card issuers see an opportunity here to lure customers while they’re young, rewarding them for the spending they’re doing anyway while also converting them into long-term cardholders. “As the consumer gets older, and presumably begins to spend more, the credit card company has already secured their business,” Allec says. Subscription services can give these relationships staying power, too, because they’re typically “set it and forget it” transactions. If an issuer can get you to use its card as your automated payment method each month, you’re more likely to keep it — even if you never take the card out of your wallet. “Credit card companies want consumers to choose their cards for subscriptions as it’s a regular — often monthly — recurring transaction that they can rely on as a base of card spend,” says Derek Szeto , co-founder of Butter , a tool that helps consumers track and manage subscriptions. “Active cards are sticky cards.”