NEW YORK — A prolonged and closely watched copyright case involving an online library’s unauthorized offering of free e-books has ended after the defendant, Internet Archive, decided not to challenge an appeal’s court’s ruling against it. In September, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit upheld a Manhattan federal court’s decision that found the Archive in violation of copyright law and granted a permanent injunction. The Archive had until this week to appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court, but declined to do so. In 2020, four major publishers — Hachette Book Group, HarperCollins Publishers, John Wiley & Sons and Penguin Random House — sued the Archive, alleging that it had illegally provided free copies of more than 100 books, including fiction by Toni Morrison and J.D. Salinger. The Archive had contended that its program of scanning and sharing books, “controlled digital lending,” was protected by fair use law. “After five years of litigation, we are thrilled to see this important case rest with the decisive opinion of the Second Circuit, which leaves no room for arguments that ‘controlled digital lending’ is anything more than infringement,” Maria A. Pallante, president and CEO of the Association of American Publishers, said in a statement. The Archive’s director of library services, Chris Freeland, posted a brief statement on the Archive’s web site saying that “While we are deeply disappointed with the Second Circuit’s opinion,” they would “continue to honor” an agreement to “remove books from lending at their member publishers’ requests.” Next up in 5 Example video title will go here for this video Next up in 5 Example video title will go here for this video
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It’s time to watch your favorite Christmas specials. While some are shown on live television, now many classic Christmas movies are available on streaming services like Max, Hulu and Disney+, including everything from animated oldies like “A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving” to beloved 2000s comedy “Elf.” So if you’re looking to watch one of the three versions of “The Grinch” or one of the other classics you can probably find it. Here’s a full list of where to stream classic holiday favorites this year: Need a break?Play the USA TODAY Daily Crossword Puzzle. More holiday movies:Hallmark’s ‘Countdown to Christmas’ has started. Here’s the schedule Olivia Munson of USA Today contributed to this report.
| Source: MEDIROM Healthcare Technologies Inc.MEDIROM Healthcare Technologies Inc. TOKYO, Dec. 23, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — MEDIROM Healthcare Technologies Inc. (NasdaqCM: MRM), a holistic healthcare company based in Japan (the “Company”), today announced its major Key Performance Indicators, or KPIs, updated for the month of November 2024. Data is provided for all salons for which comparable financial and customer data is available and excludes certain salons where such information is not available. Salon Operation Business The following monthly KPIs provide insight into the business fundamentals and progress of the Company, updated for the month of November 2024: (*1) Number of Salons: Includes the Company’s directly-operated salons and franchisees’ salons. (*2) Number of Salons with Data: The number of salons for which comparable financial and customer data is available. (*3) Total Customers Served: The number of customers served at salons for which comparable financial and customer data is available. (*4) Sales Per Customer: The ratio of total salon sales to number of treated customers at all salons for which comparable financial and customer data is available. (*5) Repeat Ratio: The ratio of repeat customer visits to total customer visits in the applicable month for all salons for which comparable financial and customer data is available. (*6) Operation Ratio: The ratio of therapists’ in-service time to total therapists’ working hours (including stand-by time) for the applicable month for all salons for which comparable financial and customer data is available.
* Repeat ratios shown in the chart above do not include salons in public bath houses. In November 2024, the repeat ratios for all salons and salons in public bathhouses only were 77.5% and 56.9%, respectively.
*Since July 2021, the salon operation business has been managed by Wing Inc., which is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Company. Health Tech Business (Lav®) The Company offers a government-specific health guidance program (the “Program”) using Lav®, an on-demand training application developed by the Company. The Program is designed to be less burdensome for the users and is delivered through a completely remote support style using the web remote interview and chat function of Lav®. This approach helps to reduce the dropout rate of conventional specific health guidance programs. The Program provides support to medical professionals, such as public health nurses, dietitians, etc., that assist eligible individuals (age between 40 and 74) who are at risk of developing lifestyle-related diseases that can be caused by an unbalanced diet, lack of sleep, lack of exercise, smoking, stress, and other factors, by reviewing their lifestyle habits through specific health checkups that focus on metabolic syndrome. The implementation of specific health checkups and specific health guidance has become mandatory for medical insurers in Japan, including national health insurance and employee health insurance providers, since April 2008. The Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare has set a nationwide target of at least 70% for specific medical checkup implementation rates and at least 45% for specific health guidance implementation rates. In fiscal year 2021, however, the medical checkup implementation rates and specific health guidance implementation rates were only 56.5% and 24.6%, respectively. As a result, the market for these services is expected to expand due to the government’s effort to achieve the set target implementation rates. According to a survey by the Japan Health Guidance Association, the utilization of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) has been increasing, and the adoption rate has exceeded 50% due to the impact of COVID-19 in recent years. As of November 2024, the Company has entered into contracts with 95 corporate insurance associations, and the cumulative number of users of the Company’s Lav® app has exceeded 8,000 people, bringing the total to 8,515 individuals. (*1) Number of new contracts with corporate insurance associations entered into in the applicable month to implement specified health guidance program offered by the Company. (*2) Number of new users that started using specified health guidance offered by the Company in the applicable month. (*3) Cumulative number of contracts with corporate insurance associations excluding the number of terminated contracts.
Forward-Looking Statements Certain statements in this press release are forward-looking statements for purposes of the safe harbor provisions under the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements may include estimates or expectations about the Company’s possible or assumed operational results, financial condition, business strategies and plans, market opportunities, competitive position, industry environment, and potential growth opportunities. In some cases, forward-looking statements can be identified by terms such as “may,” “will,” “should,” “design,” “target,” “aim,” “hope,” “expect,” “could,” “intend,” “plan,” “anticipate,” “estimate,” “believe,” “continue,” “predict,” “project,” “potential,” “goal,” or other words that convey the uncertainty of future events or outcomes. These statements relate to future events or to the Company’s future financial performance, and involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause the Company’s actual results, levels of activity, performance, or achievements to be different from any future results, levels of activity, performance or achievements expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements. You should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements because they involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which are, in some cases, beyond the Company’s control and which could, and likely will, affect actual results, levels of activity, performance or achievements. Any forward-looking statement reflects the Company’s current views with respect to future events and is subject to these and other risks, uncertainties and assumptions relating to the Company’s operations, results of operations, growth strategy and liquidity. Some of the factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements in this press release include: More information on these risks and other potential factors that could affect the Company’s business, reputation, results of operations, financial condition, and stock price is included in the Company’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”), including in the “Risk Factors” and “Operating and Financial Review and Prospects” sections of the Company’s most recently filed periodic report on Form 20-F and subsequent filings, which are available on the SEC website at www.sec.gov. The Company assumes no obligation to update or revise these forward-looking statements for any reason, or to update the reasons actual results could differ from those anticipated in these forward-looking statements, even if new information becomes available in the future. About MEDIROM Healthcare Technologies Inc. MEDIROM, a holistic healthcare company, operates 308 (as of November 30, 2024) relaxation salons across Japan, Re.Ra.Ku® being its leading brand, and provides healthcare services. In 2015, MEDIROM entered the health tech business and launched new healthcare programs using an on-demand training app called “Lav®”, which is developed by the Company. MEDIROM also entered the device business in 2020 and has developed a smart tracker “MOTHER Bracelet®”. In 2023, MEDIROM launched REMONY, a remote monitoring system for corporate clients, and has received orders from a broad range of industries, including nursing care, transportation, construction, and manufacturing, among others. MEDIROM hopes that its diverse health-related product and service offerings will help it collect and manage healthcare data from users and customers and enable it to become a leader in big data in the healthcare industry. For more information, visit https://medirom.co.jp/en. Contacts Investor Relations Team ir@medirom.co.jp Photos accompanying this announcement are available at: https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/044097ba-afae-4c7e-873a-d6c864729cce https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/095a807a-8dbc-43a6-9a11-0a2a1417d3db https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/a31937c9-e59c-4cff-9c46-0e75e4440dd2 https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/f2fcdb5d-8393-46d1-9f3d-73d7a4e2ecb4 https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/e6ed0bcb-54f5-419b-b54d-d3f0086f4bdc https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/ec917127-1447-4db9-bf54-c489f757898e https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/09ed0042-eb22-4eb2-b449-6ad4bb0b1298
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Santa Rosa’s InResponse program, which provides mental health crisis care and support, will expand to a 24/7 schedule starting Dec. 29, offering around-the-clock assistance to individuals in need across Sonoma County. If you or someone you know is experiencing a mental health crisis in Santa Rosa, call the InResponse Mental Health Support Team at 707-575-HELP (4357) On a recent afternoon, Sonoma County Behavioral Health therapist Matthew Taylor glanced at the dispatch system as a new call came through for the InResponse team. “Is this the teenager?” he asked aloud, recognizing the person from a previous interaction. “We have to take a very soft approach,” paramedic Jake Ortlinghaus added as the two sat in their Sonoma Avenue office. Moments later, they were in the van — Taylor taking quick bites of his spiced “kickin chicken” — on their way to repeat a scene that plays out eight to 12 times a day: a therapist, paramedic and outreach specialist arriving to de-escalate a crisis, or pre-crisis, and offer support. Starting Sunday, the team will be able to answer these calls around the clock. Santa Rosa’s InResponse program is set to expand to a 24/7 schedule, a long-anticipated step that could transform access to mental health, homelessness and social work care in Sonoma County. “A lot of the times families or individuals just try to white knuckle it through the overnights,” said Wendy Tappon, a Sonoma County Behavioral Health client care manager and InResponse team lead. “With a team that’s 24/7… there’s another option.” “My hope,” she added, “is that we will be utilized and that people won’t suffer alone.” Launched in January 2022, InResponse takes a civilian, multidisciplinary approach to calls involving mental health crises, substance use and other “gray area” situations — cases where care, not law enforcement, is often the appropriate intervention. The program emerged amid growing calls to reform following the 2020 Black Lives Matter protests. Modeled after Eugene, Oregon’s CAHOOTS program, InResponse deploys teams of mental health professionals, paramedics and outreach specialists with support from agencies like Buckelew Programs, Catholic Charities, the Santa Rosa Fire Department and the Sonoma County Behavioral Health Division. In 2023, the program responded to 4,759 calls, with 1,931 primarily involving mental health care. From January through September of this year, the team responded to 3,702 calls — 2,018 focused on mental health and 492 on homelessness-related care. There is often overlap in the type of services provided. The program’s impact on emergency services has been significant. Last year, 3,568 calls were diverted from law enforcement and 1,408 from fire and emergency medical services. Santa Rosa police Lt. Chris Mahurin described the program as a win-win for both responders and the community. InResponse limits the number of calls police respond to, reduces the potential for use-of-force incidents, while “increasing the amount of people getting the service they genuinely need,” Mahurin said. The move to 24/7 care fulfills a long-standing goal for InResponse. The new night shift — running from 9:30 p.m. to 7:30 a.m. — was delayed primarily by staffing shortages. Program Director KT Swan said six new team members were recently hired: three for the first half of the week and three for the second. Currently, two vans cover daytime shifts from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. and noon to 10 p.m. The program’s $3.1 million annual cost has been covered through a mix of federal and local funds. With American Rescue Plan Act funding set to expire this year, Sonoma County has pledged $1.5 million from Measure O, a tax-funded mental health initiative, to help bridge the gap, Mahurin said. Program leaders are also applying for grants, and the Santa Rosa City Council has said it will step in if additional funding is needed. The InResponse team works as a coordinated unit. During a call, therapist Matthew Taylor looks for signs of mental distress, assessing whether someone needs immediate intervention, longer-term support or both. Paramedic Jake Ortlinghaus focuses on physical health concerns, while outreach specialists like Catholic Charities’ Cavan Nelson evaluate basic needs like food, clothing or shelter. “It’s kind of like a symbiotic relationship in the sense of it’s working in partnership with the person,” Nelson said. “It’s not like we are forcing help upon someone.” The team tailors its response to each situation. During a recent call, Taylor gently asked, “Is that something you want to talk about, or should we leave that alone?” They checked the individual’s physical health, praised her progress and ensured she had updated mental health resources. Sometimes the work involves practical tasks: checking refrigerators for food, providing meals or clothing, staying present during a difficult phone call, calling an ambulance — something Ortlinghaus can do without triggering a fire department response — or connecting individuals to InResponse navigators for ongoing care. The team works across what Swan calls a “whole spectrum of folks,” from those in active crisis to individuals at risk of escalating. Occasionally, a higher level of care is required. Taylor described 5150 holds — when someone is involuntarily placed in a psychiatric facility for their safety — as a last resort and a difficult but necessary part of the job. “There’s a duty to act if there’s concern around safety for themselves or someone else,” Swan explained. “That individual sometimes doesn’t have insight around what’s happening for them.” The 24/7 expansion will fill a critical gap: overnight crises. Families and individuals who previously waited until morning to seek help will now have access to care when they need it most. “Challenges don’t arise at a specific time,” Swan said. After a recent call, Taylor, Ortlinghaus and Nelson reflected on the people they’ve helped. Some needed only one interaction to seek further care; others took 11. They’re lucky, they said, they get to see people grow or just check on them again. For the InResponse team, that persistence — and now, the ability to respond at any hour — could make all the difference. You can reach Staff Writer Madison Smalstig at madison.smalstig@pressdemocrat.com. On X (Twitter) @madi.smals. If you or someone you know is experiencing a mental health crisis in Santa Rosa, call the InResponse Mental Health Support Team at 707-575-HELP (4357)
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