March 10, 2017: D.C. Restaurant Sues Trump Hotel Over Unfair Competition, How SXSW Attendees Will Manage Without Uber and Lyft, March Madness Will Be Available on Amazon Alexa

1. D.C. RESTAURANT SUES TRUMP HOTEL OVER UNFAIR COMPETITION: Khalid Pitts and Diane Gross, owners of the Washington restaurant Cork Wine Bar—which hosts corporate dinners, political fund-raisers, and more for clients—are suing President Donald Trump and his Trump International Hotel over unfair and illegal competition. Washington Post: "'We have events we do here for elected officials, nonprofits, foreign dignitaries, the World Bank, law firms,' Gross said. 'Those folks are now being courted to come and want to go there because they see it as advantageous to them to curry favor with the president.' The White House deferred questions to the Trump Organization, which did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the legal action. … Cork’s co-owners do not name any specific client they have lost to Trump, although they say business around the inauguration fell well short of what they experienced in 2009. 'We do lose bookings sometimes and nobody ever gives you a reason. They don’t say, ‘We’re going to the Trump hotel instead of coming here.’ We do know that business has been a little slower with the inauguration of this president,' Gross said. The restaurant faces competitive pressures beyond Trump’s hotel and its BLT Prime restaurant 1½ miles away in Northwest Washington. Pitts and Gross were trailblazers when they opened on 14th Street among pawnshops and vacant storefronts in 2008. More than a year later, they opened Cork Market & Tasting Room. Since then, more than two dozen restaurants have opened nearby. And to be sure, their 2,500-square-foot brick establishment north of R Street and the 4,600-square-foot market across the street provide just a fraction of the crowd capacity and service of Trump’s 13,200-square-foot chandelier-adorned ballroom." http://wapo.st/2naUpaX

2. HOW SXSW ATTENDEES WILL MANAGE WITHOUT UBER AND LYFT: Since Uber and Lyft stopped operating in Austin because of a law requiring drivers to be fingerprinted, South by Southwest attendees will have to resort to local ride-sharing apps. Bloomberg: "But the model will face its biggest test yet on Friday, when crowds in the several hundreds of thousands will start descending upon Austin for the annual South by Southwest festival, a nine-day event that could be accurately described as a tech conference, a music and film festival, and a huge mess. In tech circles, SXSW is renowned for propelling Twitter Inc. and other apps to prominence, at least temporarily. This year’s speakers include Mark Cuban, Gawker’s Nick Denton and Reddit Inc. co-founder Alexis Ohanian. There are currently seven ride-hailing apps operating in Austin, all of which were in compliance with fingerprinting rules as of Feb. 15, the city said. None of their names will sound familiar to most SXSW attendees. Two apps are leading the pack: RideAustin and Fasten. Both claim to be the city’s leading ride-hailing provider. Michael Ferguson, a professional realtor and recreational beer consumer, prefers RideAustin to get him home after a night of drinking. … But SXSW will put a significant strain on the capacity of these young startups. Fasten sees it as an opportunity to capture the national spotlight and reach venture capitalists. It plunked down cash to be an official SXSW sponsor. The company, which is based in Boston, raised $10 million in funding last year, and Kirill Evdakov, its chief executive officer, said he’s seeking an additional $20 million to expand in more cities. RideAustin has slightly less riding on SXSW because it’s a local nonprofit with no plans to expand geographically. Still, it’s been working feverishly to mobilize drivers for the nine-day festival. The organization has placed Craigslist ads in nearby San Antonio and Houston, encouraging Uber drivers to come to town temporarily. Joe Deshotel, director of community engagement at RideAustin, boasted that drivers from those cities periodically travel to Austin for days-long work trips—a national trend that has raised social and economic concerns elsewhere." http://bloom.bg/2niqhtu

3. MARCH MADNESS WILL BE AVAILABLE ON AMAZON ALEXA: N.C.A.A. Digital is making the March Madness tournament schedule, score updates, and live radio streams of the games available to those with Amazon Alexa, the company's voice-activated intelligent personal assistant. Digiday: "The voice-enabled skill, which is already available on Amazon devices, will give users access to the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament schedule, live score updates and streams of the games’ radio broadcasts from Westwood One when the Madness begins next week. But the real reason Turner moved into voice will come into play next year, when Alexa device users can order Alexa to turn the game on on a nearby TV. 'The most immediate ROI is certainly launching video in a connected home,' said Hania Poole, the vp/gm of NCAA Digital. Turner’s skill is not the only option for Alexa users looking to stream the tournament’s radio broadcasts — digital audio startup TuneIn, which has offered streams of Westwood One radio stations since 2013, also offers them via Alexa. But it is the most robust: Instead of having to look up which Westwood One station is airing which game, users can simply ask for it by name. They can also ask for it in a casual way: Instead of requesting the score in the University of North Carolina Tarheels college basketball game, users can ask Alexa what’s going on in the UNC game, or the Carolina game, or the Tarheels game. While the tournament brackets won’t be set until Sunday, Poole said multiple school nicknames and terms will be recognized for each of the tourney entrants before tipoff. The current incarnation of this skill is part of NCAA Digital’s push to be where everyone is. But next year, Poole expects it will also help Turner Sports grow revenues by increasing video streams or traditional TV ratings, which are both big business: CBS and Turner, which hauled in a combined $1.2 billion in national TV advertising revenue last year, according to Kantar Media data." http://bit.ly/2nmzota

* LOCAL NEWS *

COAST TO COAST:  WeWork announced its Creator Awards on Thursday, a yearlong initiative to award $20 million in grants to businesses, nonprofits, and individuals. WeWork will present a series of live events as part of the awards initiative, starting with a kickoff event March 28 in Washington, D.C., and continuing throughout the U.S., Europe, and the Middle East. The company is planning to host the Creator Awards Global Finals in New York in November.

Vulture, New York magazine's entertainment and culture news site, is expanding its Vulture Festival to Los Angeles this year, with the weekend of pop culture events slated for November 18-19 at the Hollywood Roosevelt.  The fourth edition of Vulture Festival in New York is slated for May 20-21 at Milk Studios.

Wyndham Hotel Group has pointed Barry Goldstein chief marketing officer and Scott Strickland chief information officer.

AUSTIN:  The SXSW Go mobile app will have a new concierge feature this year that's powered by artificial intelligence. Dubbed "Abby," the automated bot will answer attendee questions submitted via text or voice. The bot will be able to answer questions about any of the more than 6,000 sessions taking place across more than 600 venues, such as when a specific person speaks or where a band is playing. It's also equipped to answer more general questions such as "Where can I find a taco?"

BOSTON:  Cardio High in Auburndale will host an interactive fitness event on March 29 that will offer tips and trend information from health, fitness, and nutrition professionals. Complimentary juices will be provided by New England-based Juice Press.

CHICAGO:  The Children's Place Association's Once Upon a Time Gala will take place April 22 at Revel Fulton Market. The black-and-white masquerade-theme event will be emceed by Marley Kayden of NBC 5.

LOS ANGELES:  The Human Rights Campaign will honor Katy Perry with its National Equality Award at the Los Angeles Gala Dinner on March 18.

Kinetic Lighting will host its annual open house on March 23, with networking, education, and a new product showcase.

Private equity firm Frontenac has announced the recapitalization of Wildflower Linen, a provider of designer table linens, chair covers, and accessories for event rental in Buena Park. La Tavola C.E.O. Jeff Black also will serve as C.E.O. of Wildflower Linen.

For information on upcoming events in Los Angeles, visit Masterplanner: http://www.masterplanneronline.com/losangeles

MIAMI/SOUTH FLORIDA:  The 40th annual Calle Ocho Festival will take place Sunday. For the first time, the festival will offer a tour for V.I.P. Passport-holders to explore the event's 16 blocks.

Miami Music Week will take place March 22-26 at Hyde Beach and SLS South Beach. Headliners include Afrojack featuring Ty Dolla Sign, Nervo, and Carnage.

NEW YORK:  The International Beauty Show New York will take place March 12-14 at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center. The event will offer more than 150 educational classes and 500 exhibitors.

For information on upcoming events in New York, visit Masterplanner: http://www.masterplanneronline.com/newyork

ORLANDO/CENTRAL FLORIDA:  Whole Foods Market Orlando will host two events to benefit the company's Whole Planet Foundation. The Whole Planet Foundation Carnival will be March 18 at the Winter Park location and the Beat Poverty concert will be March 29 at Tin Roof Orlando.

TORONTO:  The Toronto Yoga Conference and Show will take place March 30-April 2 at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre. The event will feature 300 workshops from 80 teachers, along with more than 300 vendors and a free, open class in a yoga garden.

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With contributions from Alesandra Dubin and Claire Hoffman in Los Angeles, Mitra Sorrells in Orlando, and Beth Kormanik, Michele Laufik, Jill Menze, and Ian Zelaya in New York.

BizBash Daily is the must-read digest of event industry news from BizBash.com.

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