AccuWeather
AccuWeather is a weather forecasting service providing real-time weather data, forecasts, and alerts through its website and mobile apps. It offers consumer and enterprise weather data services with features like MinuteCast precipitation forecasts and the proprietary RealFeel Temperature metric.
Score generated by AI agents based on publicly cited evidence and reviewed by the project maintainer. Not independently validated. Last assessed 2026-10-01. Score revised 2026-10-01: 52 → 43.
Score History
Timeline events are AI-curated from public reporting. Score trajectory is derived from documented events.
AccuWeather moved from a B2B and media forecasting service to a consumer brand with the 1996 launch of the free, ad-supported AccuWeather.com, which by the early 2000s also sold an ad-free premium option. Barry Myers already led the private weather industry's federal lobbying against National Weather Service services that competed with private firms. The consumer product was simple and lightly monetized.
The era opened with Senator Rick Santorum's National Weather Service Duties Act, which critics said would have barred the NWS from giving most forecasts directly to the public; Joel Myers had given $2,000 to Santorum's PAC two days earlier, and AccuWeather spent $40,000 lobbying that year. The bill died, but opposition to a broad public weather service became AccuWeather's defining trait. Barry Myers became CEO in 2007, the first mobile app followed in 2008, and by 2012 pop-under ads drew enough complaints that AccuWeather capped them.
AccuWeather leaned into engagement: it launched day-by-day 45-day forecasts in August 2013 (extended to 90 days in 2016) despite meteorologists' view that skill fades after 7-10 days, bought Sky Motion for MinuteCast, and became the preloaded weather provider on Samsung Galaxy phones. Push alerts and, from 2017, a weather-triggered Mobile Integration Suite deepened ad integration. Labor Department investigators later found widespread sexual harassment of female employees between 2014 and 2017.
A researcher showed the iOS app sending Wi-Fi data usable for location to Reveal Mobile even after users denied location access, and weeks later President Trump nominated CEO Barry Myers to lead NOAA, the agency AccuWeather had long lobbied to restrain. EPIC sued in 2018, the $290,000 harassment conciliation agreement was signed that June, and the one-time $3.99 Platinum app left Google Play. Myers stepped down as CEO and divested in January 2019 while his nomination stalled.
Myers withdrew his NOAA nomination days after AccuWeather changed its location-data practices in response to EPIC, closing the scandal period. Building on its September 2019 AccuWeatherIQ targeting launch, the company focused on ad yield: a Google Ad Manager overhaul that lifted CPMs 42%, Acceptable Ads served to ad-blocking visitors, and an exit from Google Play Pass's ad-free access in September 2020. It laid off on-air staff in the pandemic and shipped a cleaner app redesign in July 2020.
The launch of Premium+ ($19.99 a year at launch) put new features such as AccuWeather Alerts, and later extended forecasts, behind a second subscription tier, weeks after an attempt to paywall the status-bar temperature was reversed. The Trade Desk deal (2023) took AccuWeather's weather and lifestyle data global for programmatic ads. Steven R. Smith became the first CEO from outside the Myers family in June 2023, and in 2024 the company said it does not support Project 2025's plan to fully commercialize the NWS.
AccuWeather retired its free developer API tier in July 2025 and in August shipped a redesigned app with more than 50 new and enhanced features; reviewers tied the August 2025 update to more intrusive full-screen ads. It has since taken its weather-targeted advertising to new markets (Forward in Europe, APEX in Canada) and put its forecasts inside ChatGPT, while its former lobbyist Taylor Jordan oversees weather prediction at NOAA. Core forecasts remain free but increasingly interrupted.
Alternatives
Ad-free weather app with detailed radar, wind, and precipitation maps powered by multiple forecast models. Far less enshittified than AccuWeather. Easy switch — just download and use. Interface is more data-dense than AccuWeather, which some find powerful and others find overwhelming.
Subscription-funded weather app with a clean, customizable interface that lets subscribers choose among multiple weather data sources. Easy switch, but full features require a paid Premium subscription ($4.99/month or $19.99/year). Dramatically less enshittified than AccuWeather.
Dimensional Breakdown
Summaries below were written by AI agents based on the cited evidence. They are editorial interpretations, not independent research findings.
Dimension History
Timeline (49 events)
Barry Myers becomes weather industry's chief federal lobbyist
Barry Myers joined the board of directors of the Commercial Weather Services Association (the private weather industry's trade association, later the American Weather and Climate Industry Association) in 1990, serving as the industry's chief federal-relations officer. The role formalized AccuWeather's longstanding campaign to restrict the National Weather Service from providing services that competed with private weather companies. A 2018 Bloomberg Businessweek profile was headlined 'Trump's Pick to Lead Weather Agency Spent 30 Years Fighting It.'
AccuWeather.com launches as free weather site
AccuWeather launched AccuWeather.com as a free consumer weather website in 1996, the same year it launched Local Cable Weather, marking the company's move from a primarily B2B and media weather service to a consumer-facing digital platform. By the early 2000s the site also sold an ad-free AccuWeather Premium subscription alongside the ad-supported free site, the freemium model that would later become central to its monetization strategy.
RealFeel Temperature method patented
AccuWeather was granted U.S. Patent 6,768,945 for a 'multi factor temperature index', the method behind its RealFeel Temperature, created in the 1990s by Joel Myers, Michael Steinberg, Joseph Sobel, Elliot Abrams and Evan Myers. The application was filed in February 2001 and granted on July 27, 2004. Wikipedia describes the operational formula as a trade secret that has not been reviewed by other meteorological authorities. The metric became a key brand differentiator and mild lock-in factor.
Santorum bill would ban NWS public forecasts
U.S. Senator Rick Santorum (R-PA) introduced the National Weather Service Duties Act of 2005 (S. 786), which critics said would have prohibited the NWS from providing most weather information directly to the public, effectively routing delivery through private companies like AccuWeather. Two days before the bill was filed, Santorum's PAC received a $2,000 donation from AccuWeather's Joel Myers; Joel and Barry Myers had together given more than $11,000 to Santorum and the Republican Party since 2003. The bill attracted no cosponsors and died in committee.
AccuWeather spent $40,000 lobbying Congress on weather privatization
In 2005, AccuWeather spent $40,000 lobbying the House, Senate, and Commerce Department through Blank Rome Government Relations on 'commercial weather industry issues,' according to its year-end lobbying disclosure. The lobbying coincided with the Santorum bill and was part of a sustained campaign to restrict the National Weather Service from competing with private weather companies.
Barry Myers named CEO, consolidating family control
Barry Lee Myers, younger brother of founder Joel Myers, was named CEO of AccuWeather after serving as executive vice president and general counsel. Joel Myers remained chairman and president, and their brother Evan Myers was chief operating officer, concentrating executive control within the founding family.
AccuWeather launches mobile app
AccuWeather launched its first mobile app in 2008, after a mobile website in 2002, extending its consumer platform to smartphones. As an ad revenue-based business, AccuWeather focused on user engagement, and the app would become the primary consumer touchpoint and the main vehicle for its advertising monetization strategy.
AccuWeather acknowledges pop-under ad volume complaints
AccuWeather published an FAQ answering user complaints about pop-up and pop-under advertisements on its website. It said it had recently taken steps to reduce pop-unders so that a user should see no more than 2 in a 5-minute session, called that rate similar to many other major sites, and pointed users to its ad-free Premium AccuWeather.com service.
AccuWeather launches scientifically questionable 45-day forecast
AccuWeather introduced a 45-day forecast feature providing day-by-day temperature and precipitation predictions, calling it 'revolutionary.' Washington Post Capital Weather Gang editor Jason Samenow called it a joke, noting that forecasts beyond 7-10 days have no skill. He cited his own 2012 tracking of AccuWeather's 25-day forecasts in Washington, which were about 6 degrees off on average, no better than historical averages, with errors above 10 degrees on 6 of 30 days.
AccuWeather acquires Sky Motion for MinuteCast
AccuWeather acquired Sky Motion Research, Inc. of Montreal, Canada, a developer of ultra-short-term localized weather forecasts using proprietary nowcasting algorithms. The acquisition powered AccuWeather's MinuteCast feature, offering minute-by-minute precipitation predictions for the next two hours at half-square-mile resolution. The proprietary technology deepened AccuWeather's opaque forecasting methodology.
AccuWeather scales to 5 million push notifications monthly
AccuWeather said its push notification program through Urban Airship sent well over 2 million severe weather alerts a month, spiking as high as 5 million. It planned to expand the program with Rich Push messages that could include ads, lifestyle forecasts (such as the best two-hour window for a jogger), and location targeting beyond users' home locations.
AccuWeather powers Samsung Galaxy S5 as default weather provider
AccuWeather announced it would provide the pre-loaded weather app for Samsung's newly announced Galaxy S5, the latest step in a long-standing relationship that pre-loaded AccuWeather content on Samsung devices including the Galaxy S handsets and Note tablets, making AccuWeather the default weather source for many Galaxy users without them actively choosing it.
AccuWeather pre-installed on Samsung Galaxy S7 devices
AccuWeather announced it would power the preloaded weather content and home-screen weather widget on Samsung Galaxy S7 and S7 edge devices, continuing its partnership with Samsung. Default pre-installation created default-bias lock-in, as many users never switched from the built-in weather provider.
AccuWeather extends misleading forecasts to 90 days
AccuWeather extended its day-by-day forecasts from 45 to 90 days on its website, despite scientific criticism. The Washington Post's Jason Samenow reported that three leading meteorologists put the limit of reliable forecasts at about 7-10 days and that tests of AccuWeather's forecasts beyond 10 days found them no better than climatology; founder Joel Myers rejected the idea of limits to predictability.
Federal complaint filed alleging hostile work environment at AccuWeather
A complaint was filed with the Department of Labor's Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs alleging a hostile work environment at AccuWeather based on sex and sexual orientation. The investigation found widespread sexual harassment spanning many departments, with more than two dozen witnesses describing unlawful conduct including unwanted touching and kissing by a male employee; one woman was terminated days after being overheard complaining about sexual relationships between managers and subordinates.
AccuWeather expands Samsung partnership to Smart TVs and connected devices
AccuWeather expanded its Samsung partnership on Connected TV platforms, letting Android app users cast AccuWeather radar and satellite maps to Samsung Smart TVs. AccuWeather said the companies had partnered for more than seven years across Samsung's Galaxy S7, Gear, Connected TV and SmartThings devices, extending default-bias lock-in across Samsung's connected ecosystem.
AccuWeather launches Mobile Integration Suite for advertisers
AccuWeather launched the Mobile Integration Suite, a context-based mobile advertising package that allowed brands to seamlessly integrate advertising into the weather app experience. The suite used real-time weather conditions to trigger contextual ads (e.g., Michelin Wiper Blades ads triggered by precipitation forecasts), further blurring the line between weather content and commercial messaging.
AccuWeather caught tracking location even when users opted out
Security researcher Will Strafach found that AccuWeather's iOS app sent data to Reveal Mobile, a location-data monetization firm: precise GPS coordinates (with speed and altitude) when users granted location access, and the Wi-Fi router name and BSSID, usable to locate a device, even when users denied location access. AccuWeather said the Wi-Fi data was available on Reveal's SDK without its knowledge and disabled and removed the SDK after public outcry.
Trump nominates AccuWeather CEO Barry Myers to lead NOAA
President Donald Trump nominated AccuWeather CEO Barry Myers to lead the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the agency overseeing the National Weather Service. The nomination created severe conflict-of-interest concerns, as Myers had spent decades lobbying to restrict the NWS from providing free public weather data. Myers lacked scientific expertise compared to previous NOAA administrators. The nomination stalled for over two years amid opposition.
EPIC sues AccuWeather for deceptive location tracking
The Electronic Privacy Information Center filed a consumer protection lawsuit (EPIC v. AccuWeather, No. 2018 CA 001870 B) in D.C. Superior Court, alleging AccuWeather engaged in unlawful and deceptive practices by tracking users' locations after they had expressly opted out. EPIC alleged the company misled consumers about how their location data was being shared with third-party advertising companies.
One-time paid AccuWeather Platinum app leaves Google Play
AccuWeather Platinum, the ad-free Android app sold for a one-time $3.99 since December 2011 (500,000+ installs, rated 4.25 from about 92,000 ratings), was removed from Google Play; AppBrain last saw it listed on May 16, 2018, after a final update in March 2018. Ad-free use thereafter came through in-app purchases and subscriptions in the free app, and later reviewers complained that no one-time ad removal remained.
Barry Myers steps down as AccuWeather CEO amid NOAA nomination
AccuWeather announced that Barry Myers had stepped down as CEO and director, effective January 1, 2019, and sold all of his interest in the company, fulfilling his ethics pledge ahead of his re-nomination to lead NOAA. He had served as CEO since 2007 after previously serving as executive vice president and general counsel.
AccuWeather exploits government shutdown to undermine NWS
During the 2018-2019 federal government shutdown, AccuWeather published a story highlighting reported 'limitations' on the NWS and promoting 'alternative weather forecasting sources' and its own MinuteCast. The story drew backlash from the weather community, including a National Hurricane Center scientist, at a time NWS forecasters were working without pay. AccuWeather apologized and edited the story to remove the self-promotional language.
AccuWeather pays $290,000 for pervasive sexual harassment
AccuWeather agreed in a June 2018 conciliation agreement, first reported in February 2019, to pay $290,000 after the Labor Department's Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs found it subjected female employees to sexual harassment and a hostile work environment between 2014 and 2017. At least four women had been paid when it was signed and at least 35 others had opted in. AccuWeather denied the allegations but agreed to mandatory in-person anti-harassment training for managers and to have a third party receive and investigate harassment complaints throughout 2018.
AccuWeatherIQ launches weather-targeted advertising platform
AccuWeather launched AccuWeatherIQ, a data product suite enabling brands and advertisers to use proprietary weather forecasts for targeted advertising. Data segments were made available through Salesforce and LiveRamp Data Store, allowing advertisers to target consumers based on real-time and forecasted weather conditions, lifestyle activities, and health-related weather impacts. The platform transformed AccuWeather's consumer base into an advertising data product.
AccuWeather expands web notifications to boost site traffic for ads
An Airship case study (online by October 2019) says AccuWeather uses Airship Web Notifications to deliver national news and curated content to boost site traffic and generate more ad revenue, and uses customizable alerts to 'recapture users' attention' and 'drive app and web engagement during periods of relative calm,' including lifestyle notifications based on user hobbies.
AccuWeather changes location practices after EPIC suit
EPIC announced that, following its 2018 D.C. consumer protection suit, AccuWeather had changed its location data practices: users can now decline advertising and other non-functional uses of their device information and delete the information AccuWeather collects, with location controls separated for functional versus advertising purposes. Lexology reported the outcome as a settlement. The Reveal Mobile SDK had been removed from the app in 2017.
Barry Myers withdraws NOAA nomination after two years
Barry Myers withdrew his nomination to lead NOAA after more than two years in the confirmation process, citing health concerns related to cancer treatment. The nomination had faced sustained opposition due to conflicts of interest from his AccuWeather career, lack of scientific credentials, and the sexual harassment settlement at his family company.
AccuWeather monetizes ad-blocking audience during pandemic
During the COVID-19 pandemic, AccuWeather saw less need for daily weather updates as fewer people commuted or traveled. VP of Digital Ad Revenue and Technology Steve Mummey said this pressure led the company to stop writing off revenue lost to ad blockers and partner with Blockthrough to serve Acceptable Ads to its ad-blocking audience.
AccuWeather optimizes ads with Google, achieves 42% CPM jump
AccuWeather combined Google Analytics behavioral data with Google Ad Manager reporting to speed up its mobile site and ad requests. After final testing in April 2020, it reported a 42% increase in CPM, 39% revenue growth, a 34% increase in viewability, and top-tier 300x250 ad viewability rising from 50% to 75%, reflecting more ad revenue per visit.
AccuWeather lays off on-air staff in pandemic, drawing contract suit
AccuWeather told senior television broadcaster Laura Velasquez by email on April 1, 2020 that she was laid off without pay through at least May 31 because of a significant adverse change in business conditions from COVID-19. She sued, arguing her five-year contract allowed early termination only for job performance and alleging breach of contract and Wage Payment and Collection Law violations. AccuWeather declined to say how many other employees were laid off.
AccuWeather ships redesigned app with MinuteCast up front
AccuWeather released a completely redesigned app, first on iOS with Android to follow, that it said was easier to navigate, faster to load and put its MinuteCast minute-by-minute precipitation forecast front and center alongside RealFeel. The redesign was a usability improvement for the free app.
AccuWeather exits Google Play Pass
AccuWeather left Google Play Pass, which had given subscribers an ad-free AccuWeather experience otherwise costing $9 a year, effective September 20, 2020. The exit was announced in August, the month Apple-acquired competitor Dark Sky left Android. AccuWeather claimed it was complying with Google policy on in-app subscriptions, but Google said Play Pass had begun admitting apps with subscriptions the week before.
AccuWeather briefly puts temperature notification behind paywall
An AccuWeather for Android update replaced the long-available persistent temperature in the status bar with a generic icon, keeping the temperature only for new Premium+ subscribers, as AccuWeather introduced alerts exclusive to that tier. After 9to5Google and Android Police reported it, AccuWeather told Android Police the removal was an accident and rolled out a fixed build the same day.
AccuWeather launches Premium+ subscription tier
AccuWeather introduced the Premium+ subscription tier at $19.99/year or $1.99/month, offering an ad-free experience and advanced weather alert features. The standard Premium subscription cost $8.99/year or $0.99/month. The tiered approach created a classic 'degraded free tier' model where the base experience was increasingly burdened with ads to pressure users toward paid subscriptions.
AccuWeather hires Innovative Federal Strategies, with Taylor Jordan, to lobby on Weather Act
AccuWeather registered Innovative Federal Strategies as its lobbying firm effective February 1, 2023, with lobbyists including Taylor Jordan, a former NOAA senior adviser and House Science Committee staffer, on weather forecasting and data dissemination. Its 2023 reports describe lobbying Congress and the Commerce Department on Weather Act reauthorization and private sector weather forecast improvement ($70,000 for the year); the engagement was terminated at the end of 2023, and no AccuWeather lobbying filings appear for 2024-2026. It followed Capitol Meteorologics' $40,000-a-quarter representation, which ended in mid-2022.
AccuWeather widget stops working on older Samsung phones
Owners of older Samsung Galaxy phones running Android 4 and 5 reported that the preloaded AccuWeather weather widget could no longer find or refresh locations, as current AccuWeather apps require Android 6 or newer and AccuWeather's servers reject outdated app versions. The legacy default-widget arrangement on those devices had effectively lapsed.
AccuWeather partners with The Trade Desk for ad data
AccuWeather announced a partnership with The Trade Desk, the first demand-side platform to gain access to the global AccuWeather Data Suite. Marketers could now leverage weather conditions, health risks, mood and lifestyle activity data for programmatic advertising across North America, Europe, the Middle East, Asia Pacific, and Latin America. The partnership expanded AccuWeather's role as a data supplier for the advertising ecosystem.
Steven Smith replaces Joel Myers as CEO
AccuWeather named Steven R. Smith as CEO, ending Joel Myers' six-decade leadership. Myers became Executive Chairman. Smith had been with AccuWeather for over 25 years, holding roles including CIO (2007), Chief Digital Officer (2013), President of Digital Media (2015), and President of AccuWeather (2019). The transition continued the company's focus on digital media and advertising growth.
AccuWeather showcases patented proprietary AI forecasting model
AccuWeather's Data Sciences and AI team showcased a patented AI-based process at the Databricks Data + AI Summit that combines partner business-impact data with AccuWeather weather data in a proprietary machine learning algorithm. AccuWeather separately describes its SWIFT forecast engine as proprietary and patented, so its forecasting methods are not open to independent evaluation.
AccuWeather disavows Project 2025 plan to fully commercialize NWS
CEO Steven R. Smith said AccuWeather does not agree that the National Weather Service should fully commercialize its operations and that Project 2025's authors cited AccuWeather without its knowledge or permission. The statement endorsed the National Academies' Fair Weather multisector model, while arguing NOAA should focus on a core role of infrastructure, models, open data dissemination and severe-weather warnings rather than 'other distracting activities.'
Weather Station Experts calls for AccuWeather antitrust inquiry
The Weather Station Experts published an editorial arguing AccuWeather 'isn't playing fair and hasn't essentially its entire existence,' calling for a formal antitrust investigation into the company's decades of lobbying to restrict the National Weather Service. The article cited AccuWeather's sustained efforts to privatize taxpayer-funded weather data for commercial benefit as anti-competitive conduct.
Meteorologists dismiss AccuWeather-promoted study claiming it beat NHC
AccuWeather promoted a Kantar study of the 2024 Atlantic season concluding its hurricane forecasts were the most accurate and most useful. WeatherTiger's Ryan Truchelut said its claims cannot be falsified and are not scientific, that AccuWeather does not publish the 6-hourly track and intensity forecasts needed for independent verification, and called it marketing released while NOAA and the NWS faced cuts. Other critics noted it ignored false positives and covered only one year.
Trump appointees with weather industry ties advance privatization
PBS News reported that Trump appointees to NOAA had ties to companies that would benefit from privatizing weather forecasts, as Project 2025 called for the weather service to 'fully commercialize its forecasting operations.' Taylor Jordan, a lobbyist who had represented AccuWeather before Congress and in meetings with the Commerce Department, was nominated for a top NOAA position.
AccuWeather discontinues free API access for developers
AccuWeather retired its free Core Weather API tier and replaced it with 14-day trials limited to 500 API calls per day. After the trial, developers were required to purchase a Starter package beginning at $2/month. Home automation communities and open-source projects that had integrated AccuWeather data were forced to migrate to alternative weather APIs or pay for continued access.
AccuWeather releases redesigned app; reviewers blame update for intrusive ads
AccuWeather released a redesigned iOS and Android app with more than 50 new and enhanced features after nearly a year of testing, including a MinuteCast dial, more than a dozen new maps and a single Today screen. Trustpilot reviewers afterward cited the 'August 2025 update' when leaving, complaining of changed layouts and a more intrusive advertising system, and app-store reviews describe full-screen ads with skip timers on screen changes.
AccuWeather launches weather app inside ChatGPT
AccuWeather launched an app in ChatGPT that serves its current conditions, MinuteCast, RealFeel, hourly and 10-day forecasts, radar and government advisories in conversation, extending its forecasts to AI assistants outside its own ad-supported apps.
AccuWeather brings weather-triggered advertising to Europe via Forward
Forward, the lastminute.com-backed media house, made AccuWeather part of its European media portfolio to offer brands weather-triggered advertising. AccuWeather's head of international sales pitched the accuracy of its first-party weather and location data and said tens of millions of European users rely on it.
APEX Mobile Media resells AccuWeather ad inventory and data in Canada
APEX Mobile Media partnered with AccuWeather to sell Canadian advertisers placements across AccuWeather's app, mobile web and desktop, from standard media to high-impact takeovers, video and immersive in-app units, targeted with weather, location and intent-driven first-party data and more than 50 proprietary indices. AccuWeather says it reaches about 200 million users a month.
Evidence (46 citations)
D1: User Value Erosion
D2: Business Customer Exploitation
D3: Shareholder Extraction
D4: Lock-in & Switching Costs
D5: Twiddling & Algorithmic Opacity
D6: Dark Patterns
D7: Advertising & Monetization Pressure
D8: Competitive Conduct
D9: Labor & Governance
D10: Regulatory & Legal Posture
Scoring Log (7 entries)
Checked 84 items + prose. 27 verified, 45 corrected (19 date-only), 10 re-sourced, 2 removed. Invented: 'no better than random chance' quote (WaPo 2013 says 'no better than historical averages'); 'Penn State students' found 'negative skill' (Wikipedia: assessment was by professor Jon Nese); $156.6M revenue (content-farm estimate only); '$290,000 EEOC settlement' (it was the Labor Dept's OFCCP, per WaPo/ThinkProgress). Also corrected: RealFeel patent 2004 not 1997; temperature-notification paywall reversed same day (Android Police); Sitejabber now 2.2/5 not 1.5. Fixed GPS-vs-Wi-Fi location claims, Santorum donation figures, harassment-settlement details, brothers (not sons), Samsung shutdown claim, prices.
52->43. Since Feb 2026: no enforcement, lawsuits, layoffs or price changes found; AccuWeather added a ChatGPT app (Mar 2026) and new ad-sales partners in Europe (Forward, May 2026) and Canada (APEX, Sep 2026); federal lobbying filings stop after 2023. D1 6->5 (correction: temperature paywall reversed same day; iOS 4.6/1.5M vs Android 3.6/2.57M), D2 5->3 (recalibration: API free-tier end is small-dollar, no exploitative business terms), D3 4->3 (recalibration: private, no buybacks, continued acquisitions), D6 6->5 (correction: unsupported ad-audio/unclosable-ad claims dropped, location deception remedied 2019, app-store cancellation is standard), D7 8->7 (recalibration: interstitials and subscription-only ad removal fit 6-7, core forecasts free), D8 7->5 (recalibration: not market-dominant, lobbying modest and lapsed per LDA, 2024 disavowal of full NWS commercialization), D9 5->4 (recalibration: harassment matter 2014-2017, non-family CEO since 2023). Eras: 'NWS Lobbying Campaign' re-dated 2005-06-01->2005-04-14 (Santorum bill); 'Mobile Ad Expansion' re-dated 2014-01-01 (placeholder)->2013-08-06 (45-day forecast); 'Privacy Scandal & NOAA Bid' re-dated 2017-09-01->2017-08-22; 'Settlements & Ad Intensification' re-dated 2020-01-01->2019-11-21 (Myers withdrawal), relabeled 'Post-NOAA Ad Optimization' and split at 2022-05-04 (Premium+ launch) -> 'Premium+ Paywall Tier'; final era re-dated 2026-02-12 (scoring date)->2025-07-23 (free API retired; Aug 2025 redesign), relabeled 'API Paywall & Redesign'; 'Early Digital Era' kept. Category 'Weather' fine.
Removed typed-in site scores from alternatives text (they go stale on re-score; the page shows live scores). No other changes.
Added 2 missing dimension narratives