ISIS numbers lowest in two years: US State Dept official

Militant raising the ISIS flag (File Photo)
Along with dwindling numbers of ISIS militants in Iraq and Syria, the Islamist militant organisation is also struggling to gain support in Libya.

The number of Islamic State fighters in Syria and Iraq is lower than at any time in the past two years, Deputy US Secretary of State Antony Blinken told a US Senate hearing on Tuesday.

"In fact, we assess Daesh's (Islamic State's) numbers are the lowest they've been since we began monitoring their manpower in 2014," Blinken said in testimony prepared for the Appropriations subcommittee hearing.

The Islamist militant organisation is also struggling to gain support in Libya

Packed into a battered car, a family of nine joined the steady flow of residents fleeing Islamic State's Libyan stronghold of Sirte. They were heading to a nearby town to pick up essentials: cash, medicine and food.

A few kilometres beyond the militant group's zone of control, the family gave an account of life in the city: young men murdered for refusing to pledge allegiance to Islamic State, public beatings for dress violations, property seizures and growing food shortages.

"They're there to occupy the city," said the wife from behind her black veil, as her children glanced nervously from the rear of the vehicle one afternoon in late February. "They're killing, kidnapping and torturing."

Sirte is a city upended. Once given favoured treatment by former leader Muammar Gaddafi, who was born there, it now serves as a Mediterranean base for the most important Islamic State branch outside Syria and Iraq. That has left Western intelligence agencies struggling to figure out how far Islamic State can extend its influence across Libya – and how to stop the group.

Some Libyan and Western officials see Sirte as a foothold for further Islamic State expansion. From there the ultra-hardline Sunni group has ventured east along the coast, edging closer to major oil fields. It now controls a thin strip along about 250 km (155 miles) of Libya's central coastline. Sirte as a foothold for further Islamic State expansion. From there the ultra-hardline Sunni group has ventured east along the coast, edging closer to major oil fields. It now controls a thin strip along about 250 km (155 miles) of Libya's central coastline.

Though Islamic State's manpower in Libya is uncertain, membership has been growing. Western intelligence agencies and the UN estimate its fighting force, which includes a growing number of foreigners, at between 3,000 and 6,000. "Their dream is to control the oil fields in the east and expand to the west to Tripoli and Misrata," said Mahmoud Zagal, head of the Misrata military operations room for local forces opposed to Islamic State.

But much still hangs in the balance, and ISIS may struggle to control large swathes of the country. General David M. Rodriguez, head of US Africa Command, told a news briefing in Washington on April 8 that it will be difficult for Islamic State to seize huge swathes of Libya "because they don't have the home-grown people that know as much about Libya like they did in Iraq and Syria." Libyans, he said, "don't like ... external influences."

After Bill Clinton's showdown with Black Lives Matter activists, Hillary in trouble for perceived racist joke

Bill Clinton and Hillary Clinton (Reuters)
When a comic gag turned into a gaffe.

A comic gag turned into a gaffe for Democratic presidential hopeful Hillary Clinton and New York Mayor Bill de Blasio, triggering a social media storm that raged through Tuesday over what some said was their insensitivity to African-Americans.

New York voters head to the polls next week for the primary election on April 19. While Clinton has strong support from black voters, some supporters worry that Democratic challenger Bernie Sanders has begun making inroads with them.

Clinton and de Blasio took the stage on Saturday at the Inner Circle, an annual media roast of politicians that traditionally ends with New York's mayor delivering a snarky rebuttal in the form of a rehearsed skit, often with the help of Broadway cast members.

This year Leslie Odom Jr., who is black and plays Aaron Burr in the hit Broadway show "Hamilton," participated in the planned joke.

In the skit, Clinton kidded de Blasio about his delay in endorsing her bid for the White House.

"Sorry, Hillary, I was running on C.P. Time," de Blasio said, referring to the phrase "colored people time" used to indicate chronic lateness.

"I don't like jokes like that," Odom said.

Clinton then added: "'Cautious politician time.' I've been there."

The joke quickly led to an angry reaction on social media, with commentators criticizing Clinton and de Blasio for being insensitive to blacks. De Blasio's wife, Chirlane McCray, is African-American.

"In what kind of twisted world does a POTUS candidate make a #CPTime joke at a high $ event "inner circle" & ppl think it's ok... #wakeup" Jenny Li @jennyjenli posted on Twitter on Tuesday.

"@HillaryClinton did the equivalent of kicking Blacks in their butts by participating in #CPtime "joke". #NYprimary," tweeted Anthony B. @PoliticalAnt.

De Blasio defended the joke in an appearance on CNN on Monday. "It was clearly a staged event," he said " ... I think people are missing the point here."

A few days ago, former President Bill Clinton had faced down protesters angry at the impact his 1994 crime reforms have had on black Americans and defended the record of his wife, Hillary Clinton, who is relying on the support of black voters in her quest for the presidency.

The former president spent more than 10 minutes confronting the protesters at a campaign rally in Philadelphia for his wife over criticisms that the crime bill he approved while president led to a surge in the imprisonment of black people.

Clinton did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.

(With Inputs from Reuters)

Solo Antarctic Explorer Dies Just Short of Goal

Even before the 55-year-old former army officer made the agonizing call, his journey was full of harrowing moments.

Jan 25, 2016 11:30 AM ET //

Even before the 55-year-old former army officer made the agonizing call, his journey was full of harrowing moments. Continue reading →

May 12, 2015 12:20 PM ET //

Growing sea ice surrounding could prompt scientists to relocate research stations on the continent.

Apr 29, 2015 09:48 AM ET //

The photos depict day-to-day life at the Antarctic base camp of ill-fated explorer Robert Falcon Scott.

Mar 3, 2014 07:00 AM ET //

Astroskin, a prototype device to monitor astronaut health, is a garment that fits over a person's upper body and is embedded with wireless sensors.

Jan 9, 2014 10:10 AM ET //

Antarctica represents one of the last frontiers for adventurous travelers, but blizzards, icebergs and treacherous seas are also a fact of life there.

Jan 8, 2014 08:30 AM ET //

A complex international operation to free a Russian ship trapped in Antarctica ended Wednesday when the vessel cleared the ice field.

Jan 2, 2014 08:30 AM ET //

All 52 passengers on an icebound Russian research vessel in Antarctica were airlifted from the ice Thursday in a dramatic rescue mission.

Dec 30, 2013 04:15 PM ET //

Harsh weather causes the stranded expedition to have to wait it out until it's safe for a Chinese helicopter to carry people to safety.

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Russian Ship Clears Ice Field in Antarctica: Page 2

Two penguins play in front of the trapped Russian vessel MV Akademik Shokalskiy off the Antarctic, Jan.

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Two penguins play in front of the trapped Russian vessel MV Akademik Shokalskiy off the Antarctic, Jan. 2.

Zhang Jiansong/Xinhua Press/Corbis

Gallery

100-Year-Old Negatives Recovered From Antarctica: Photos

View Caption +

Antarctic Heritage Trust conservators recently made a stunning discovery: a box of 22 exposed but unprocessed negatives, frozen in a block of ice for nearly one hundred years. The negatives were recovered from a corner of a supply hut that British explorer Robert Falcon Scott established to support his doomed expedition to the South Pole from 1910-1913. Scott and his men reached the South Pole but died on the trip home. The hut was next used by the Ross Sea Party of Sir Ernest Shackleton's 1914-1917 Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition after they were stranded on Ross Island when their ship, the Aurora, blew out to sea. This party is believed to have left behind the undeveloped negatives. The cellulose nitrate negatives are seen here as they were found -- frozen in ice.

Antarctic Heritage Trust, nzaht.org

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The Antarctic Heritage Trust tapped conservator Mark Strange to painstakingly separate, clean (including removing mold) and consolidate the 22 layers of film.

Antarctic Heritage Trust, www.nzaht.org

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This recovered image shows Alexander Stevens, the chief scientist and geologist of the Ross Sea Party, on the deck of the Aurora in McMurdo Sound, Antarctica.

Antarctic Heritage Trust, www. nzaht.org

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A view of Tent Island in McMurdo Sound. There is mold damage evident around the edges of the image.

Antarctic Heritage Trust, www. nzaht.org

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This damaged photo shows Big Razorback Island in McMurdo Sound.

Antarctic Heritage Trust, www.nzaht.org

View Caption +

Alexander Stevens again poses on board the deck of the Aurora. It was not until January 1917 that the Aurora returned to rescue the Ross Sea Party. By then three men had died, including Arnold Patrick Spencer-Smith, the team's photographer. To see more images from the recovered negatives, visit the Antarctic Heritage Trust's website .

Antarctic Heritage Trust, www.nzaht.org

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The ship, which has 22 crew on board, took about 12 hours to leave the ice field behind and is now heading to New Zealand, AMSA said.

The captain of the Chinese vessel had also managed to break free of the heaviest ice around the same time "and is now making slow progress through lighter ice conditions" and is in need of no assistance, it said.

The ice surrounding the Xue Long, which has 101 people on board, had been up to 13 feet thick.

The Xue Long, or Snow Dragon, had been trapped since Friday, one day after dramatically rescuing 52 scientists, passengers and journalists from the Shokalskiy using its helicopter.

The 52 were transferred to the Australian Antarctic program's supply ship the Aurora Australis, which also raced to the rescue but was unable to break through the ice to reach the Russian vessel.

In total five ships were involved in the search and rescue mission -- Akademik Shokalskiy, the French vessel L'Astrolabe, Xue Long, Aurora Australis and USCGC Polar Star.

The national Antarctic programmes and other agencies of France, China, Australia, Germany and the US helped with "actual operational responses, contingency planning or the provision of specialist data," AMSA said.

"This was a great example of the multi-lateral cooperative nature of Antarctic operations," the authority's acting chief executive Mick Kinley said.

But the diversion of several government's Antarctic program's resources to help the Shokalskiy has drawn criticism of its "Spirit of Mawson" expedition which was emulating a 1911-1914 tour by explorer Sir Douglas Mawson.

The Aurora, which was resupplying Australia's Antarctic base at Casey when it was diverted, is now running two weeks behind schedule, while French scientists have had to scrap a two-week oceanographic campaign.

Turkey: Five arrested for 'insulting' President Recep Tayyip Erdogan

Recep Tayyip Erdogan (Reuters)
The cases have raised concerns over freedom of expression in Turkey.

Five men were jailed in Turkey for "insulting" President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, reports have said, one of several such cases that have intensified alarm over the country's slide towards authoritarianism.

The five from the southern province of Sanliurfa were accused of damaging the president on social media, according to the Dogan news agency. A sixth person was arrested but later released. Almost 2,000 people have been prosecuted for "insulting" Erdogan since the former premier became president in August 2014, Turkey's justice minister said in March.

The court cases have raised concerns over freedom of expression in Turkey and Erdogan has also been accused of seeking to muzzle the press, NGOs and academics. Erdogan has repeatedly denied that there had been any crackdown on free expression in his country.

A German comedian has become the centre of a diplomatic spat between Turkey and Germany over a satirical poem that accused Erdogan of paedophilia and bestiality. Turkey has demanded that Berlin prosecutes the TV satirist, Jan Bohmermann, for slander.

In an, Erdogan warned on Thursday that he will continue to sue critics who insult him in Turkey, where journalists and other critics of the president have been imprisoned. Since becoming president in August 2014, Erdogan has filed a record 1,845 court cases against individuals for insulting him, resulting in a more than a dozen sentences, activists have said. Insulting the president carries a maximum of four years in prison in Turkey.

Police raids Mossack Fonseca's headquarters amid Panama Papers leak

Investigations are carried out on the 500 Indian names revealed in the Panama Papers leak (AFP)
Investigations are carried out on the 500 Indian names revealed in the Panama Papers leak
Police have raided the headquarters of the Panama law firm whose leaked documents have unleashed a global scandal over how the world's elite use offshore companies to hide their wealth.

Organised crime police surrounded Mossack Fonseca's headquarters in Panama City on Tuesday as the offices were being searched, along with several other branches. Prosecutors said the raids had taken place "with no incident or interference," but gave no details on the results of the searches.

The fallout from the so-called Panama Papers, which law firm Mossack Fonseca claims were stolen when hackers from abroad breached its system, has spread around the world. A year-long probe by a consortium of investigative journalists examined the papers, which come from around 214,000 offshore entities and cover almost 40 years.

ALSO READ Panama Papers: 90% Indians operated within RBI norms, unlikely to face any action

The world's business, political and even sports elite have been thrown onto the defensive. Iceland's prime minister was forced to resign after it emerged he owned shares in the country's banks through an offshore company during the financial crisis.

Leaders in Britain and Ukraine have faced questions over their taxes, while Russian President Vladimir Putin has sought to divert attention from his entourage by claiming it is all a US plot against him.

ALSO READ Iceland finance minister says won't resign over Panama Papers leaks

China has been censoring online forums and media to stifle discussion of the papers, which showed relatives of eight of its political top brass also owned offshore companies. And wealthy citizens in Australia, France, India, Mexico, Peru, Spain and elsewhere face probes over suspected tax avoidance after their names figured in some of the 11.5 leaked million documents.

Panama has hit back at the apparent blemish on its image as an important financial crossroads. It warned France earlier yesterday, before the raid on the law firm, of unspecified diplomatic measures if France does not remove it from a blacklist of tax havens.

ALSO READ Panama Papers leak: David Cameron says his tax affairs 'entirely standard practice'

Paris put Panama back on its national list of uncooperative jurisdictions, after removing it in 2012, in the wake of the leaks. France is also urging the European Union and all member states of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development to follow suit. Such an international designation would deal a heavy blow to Panama's vital financial services sector, which the government has been trying to make more transparent.

Kremlin says no political agenda behind search of billionaire Mikhail Prokhorov's offices

(Getty Images)
The Kremlin said it had nothing to do with law enforcement searches of the offices of Russian tycoon Mikhail Prokhorov and that there was no connection between the searches and articles published by the RBC media group which Prokhorov controls.

"It is absolutely inappropriate to connect any activities by law enforcement to the editorial policy of RBC holding, all the more so to connect this to the Kremlin," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told a conference call with journalists. "I would add that, there's no question ... of there having been any kind of pressure on the editorial policy of RBC."

The holding's newspaper has published reports about the commercial activities of people close to Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Turkish police fire tear gas at crowds around Istanbul's new stadium

Besiktas supporters run away from tear gas used by Turkish anti-riot police to disperse supporters around the stadium before the Turkish Spor Toto Super league football match between Besiktas and Bursaspor (AFP)
The crowd gathered at the stadium which included was dispered by the police without citing any reasons.

Turkish police on Monday fired tear gas into crowds of soccer fans arriving for the opening match at Istanbul side Besiktas' new $100 million stadium, witnesses said.

Thousands of fans massed around the 42,000-seat Vodafone Arena, under construction for nearly three years, before a match between top-of-the-league Besiktas and mid-table Bursaspor. It was not immediately clear why police dispersed the crowd, which included young children, media said.

Authorities had formed a security line around the arena and blocked all car traffic. Police appeared to react when crowds pushed towards the turnstiles, witnesses said.

Another witness who lives a mile away from the arena reported seeing clouds of teargas envelop the area and spill out over the waters of the Bosphorus Strait. The stadium is nestled on the shores of the waterway near an Ottoman palace.

Turkey is on edge and has tightened security in public spaces after a series of bombings in Istanbul and the capital Ankara this year, which the government blamed on Islamic State and the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK).

Is this Vladimir Putin's new girlfriend?

In a post, Alisa Kharcheva had sent Putin a kitten for his birthday in 2012, explaining in a blog titled'Pussy for Putin' that thought it was the perfect gift for the Russian leader (OCCRP official site - Image credit)
The calendar girl had posed for an erotic calendar for Putin after she graduated from high school.

Russian President Vladimir Putin is rumoured to have a new girlfriend in town, a 23-year-old calendar model named Alisa Kharcheva.

According to Russian sources, Putin is dating Kharcheva who, after she graduated from high school, posed in an erotic calendar in the year 2010 which was dedicated to the Russian President's birthday, Pagesix.com reported.

In 2013, Kharcheva composed another birthday greeting for Putin in a blog which was titled "Pussy for Putin". The Russian beauty, in the particular post, pictured herself suggestively with a cat and a portrait of the Russian leader.

According to the real estate records uncovered by Reuters, the women Putin is linked to live in houses that have been transferred to them by a 47-year-old business man named Grigory Baevsky. Baevsky has very lucrative government contacts.

Reports state that Baevsky has "sold" the calendar girl an apartment in Moscow which has an underground parking. Sources say that this could mean that Putin has taken a fancy to Kharcheva.

PM Narendra Modi leaves for seven-day visit to Ireland, US

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PM Modi courts top Silicon Valley executives at dinner, bats for Digital India

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Amnesty International says 'serious flaws' mar Greek side of EU-Turkey refugee deal

Refugees disembark from a Turkish coastguard boat after a failed attempt at crossing to the Greek island of Lesbos, in the Turkish coastal town of Dikili, Turkey April 6, 2016.

(Reuters)

Amnesty International said among those refugees kept in holding centres in Greece is a small baby with complications after an attack in Syria.

Refugees held on the Greek islands Lesbos and Chios live in "appalling" conditions with little access to legal aid or information about their fate under a European Union (EU) agreement that will send some back to Turkey, Amnesty International said on Thursday.

Under a deal between the EU and Ankara in place since March 20, undocumented refugees who cross to Greek islands will be kept in holding centres until their asylum claims are processed. Those who do not qualify will be returned to Turkey.

The first group of 202 refugees to be returned, most of them from Pakistan and Afghanistan, were sent back to Turkey on Monday. "People detained on Lesbos and Chios have virtually no access to legal aid, limited access to services and support, and hardly any information about their current status or possible fate," said Amnesty Deputy Director for Europe Gauri van Gulik. "The fear and desperation are palpable," she said.

ALSO READ Greece begins ferrying refugees to Turkey under landmark EU deal

Refugees prepare to sleep at the port in the town of Chios where refugees and migrants who broke out from Vial detention center camp out on April 3, 2016. Credit: AFP

ALSO READ Turkey forcibly returning Syrian refugees to war zone: Amnesty International

In a report published Thursday, Amnesty said among those held in the centres are a small baby with complications after an attack in Syria, heavily pregnant women, people unable to walk, and a young girl with a developmental disability. Many refugees spoke about the lack of access to doctors or medical staff. Legal aid is scarce and inaccessible to the vast majority, and asylum procedures are expected to be rushed, it said.

Refugees told Amnesty that they did not get enough information about what the asylum process will entail. Many have received no or incomplete documentation of their registration. "It is likely that thousands of asylum seekers will be returned to Turkey despite it being manifestly unsafe for them," Amnesty wrote. Monitors visited the islands this week.

ALSO READ Refugee babies exposed to filth, infections at Greek border camp

One Syrian woman told Amnesty she and her family signed several documents despite not having an interpreter present, and were not provided with copies. "I don't need food, I need to know what is happening," the woman was quoted as saying. "Serious and immediate steps must be taken to address the glaring gaps we've documented in Lesbos and Chios," Amnesty's van Gulik said.Lesbos and Chios," Amnesty's van Gulik said.

"They show that in addition to Turkey not being safe for refugees at the moment, there are also serious flaws on the Greek side of the EU-Turkey deal. Until both are fully resolved, no further returns should take place."

Facebook's Free Basics is neither free nor basic, say IIT faculty

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Facebook Hugs WhatsApp: Peoples' view

From Top Left ( clockwise), Abhishek Waghmare, Deepank Shikarpur, Ganesh Natarajan, Saurabh Jain, Asawari Karmarkar, Prashant Pansare, Vasant Shetty & Ishaan Kulkarni speak up about WhatsApp being bought by Facebook.

(dna - File Photo)

In what is being viewed as a landmark technology deal, social network Facebook Inc has acquired popular messaging app WhatsApp for a whopping $19 billion. Although Mark Zuckerburg has assured users that WhatsApp will continue to operate independently with no advertising, how do WhatsApp users react to the acquisition.

Sourabh Jain, Entrepreneur

Good for Facebook, but it can create problems for users as , WhatsApp will not be an ad-free app anymore (sic). The end users of WhatsApp will suffer, but Facebook is bound to increase its business. Facebook just recently started business ads, so these ads are bound to pop up in WhatsApp (sic). The freedom that users were enjoying with WhatsApp, we fear that it will end soon. At present ,WhatsApp has a free as well as paid model and Facebook will scrap the free model very soon. The WhatsApp messaging service will be soon linked with Facebook accounts (sic). It is one of the biggest acquisition in the market, where Facebook has paid a lot, which it is sure to recover by monetizing the service very soon. How Facebook will monetize WhatsApp, is something we have to wait.

Ganesh Natarajan, Vice Chairman and CEO, Zensar Technologies

This is a landmark acquisition for Facebook, even as it struggles to justify its own high valuations, which are outlandish by any conventional standards. While WhatsApp has been one of the best scaling stories in the recent past, adding a million users every day ( including yours truly a couple of months ago!), the deal values each user at forty dollars, which is a high price to pay for acquiring a larger space in the internet landscape. One could argue that valuations in this sector are based on unprecedented growth projections and the benchmark is Facebook’s own valuation of nearly $200 billion and China’s Tencent valued at close to $150 billion. WhatsApp users have nothing to worry about in the short term . Facebook will invest in the platform and maintain relative independence, but the real question to ask is how the user will be tied to the Facebook family of products and service in future.

Ishaan Kulkarni, Senior Officer, Automtiv Service Solutions

I find it as a complete strategically-planned decision. The use of Facebook has been drastically decreased due to competitors such as, Twitter, WhatsApp, Instagram, etc., and now almost every mobile phone user is on WhatsApp. In fact the first question one asks before buying is “isme WhatsApp hai Kya” and we also get to hear, ‘I will ping you on WhatsApp’, every alternate minute. Now I am waiting for what new things WhatsApp + Facebook brings into common man’s life. But in my personal view things are not going to change much except the fact that we all are largely addicted to both of them.

Deepak Shikarpur, Co chairman, IT committee, MCCIA

Facebook’s acquisition of WhatsApp makes smart sense . When many mobile apps were offering gaming and associated visual services, what made WhatsApp stand out was a focused, clean, lightning fast communications service that worked flawlessly. By using the internet as its communication backbone, WhatsApp has completely transformed personal communications and virtually replaced mobile SMS messaging services. WhatsApp has more than 450 million active users, and reached that number faster than any other company in history. Facebook was becoming stale and had a danger of loosing user base with advent of Google + and need to have focused social media. This acquisition also gives Facebook entry in China, where it is banned and WhatsApp is permitted. What needs to be seen in the future is how Facebook uses WhatsApp to enhance its services. Most users use both the products and seamless integration can make user smarter.

Vasant Shetty, Vice President, Saama Technologies India

Last few years there is an increase in the adoption of mobile applications on smart phone devices for emails, chat, pictures, video and overall social networking compared to the desktop internet-based application (sic). This acquisition will help Facebook accelerate its mobile strategy and it also shows its determination to win the market for messaging. The price tag, yes, looks very expensive now, as was the price for YouTube (When Google acquired) and PayPal (when eBay acquired) but now both these companies contribute substantial part of revenue of the parent company . Over next few years we will have to see how Facebook will integrate WhatsApp into their mobile ecosystem platform and also create additional revenue stream.

Abhishek Waghmare, Research Associate, GreenEarth Social Development Consultants

We are in the stage of the communication revolution, where the devices that give access to means and modes of communication have become an obsession. That Facebook Corporation has bought 'WhatsApp' will change nothing for the users , in the sense that we will enjoy and get obsessed with whatever new we have. A giant social media company has took over a smaller one, but equally famous. It will serve socially-hungry people more fodder, per se. Likes and comments may enter WhatsApp and 'Last seen at' may spoil the Facebook experience.

Prashant Pansare, MD, Inteliment Technologies (Big Data Analytics)

Facebook is again throwing money to push down competition and paying $19 Bn is a ‘business gamble’ for this scale transaction . This may also be a reaction to the recent purchase of Viber by Rakuten. Facebook recently refreshed its messenger App UI and has been struggling to gain similar popularity on mobile platform. WhatsApp’s value is its huge foothold in Asian markets, as more and more young people are signing up for the “privacy” of the app, as a way to communicate without being slaughtered by expensive phone tariffs. WhatsApp’s creator says users will not see any changes and that it will not integrate ads, but that doesn’t preclude under-the-hood tinkering that could provide more information for ads on the Facebook platform. It’s too early to say whether this is too high a price tag. The ingredients are there for Facebook to make this purchase a win, and mobile does, after all, remain the present and the future.

Asavari Karmarkar, Research Associate ( Jay biotech )

WhatsApp has become an integral part of my life , something I use to share my thoughts, emotions and news with my loved ones. Altough it has been bought by Facebook and could change a little bit it should remain free to use for the first year, just as it is now.The costumer safety service provided by Facebook should also be available for Whatsapp but I feel sharing your photos as display picture is getting riskier day by day, so perhaps for some numbers we should get the option to not display a profile photo.

Mark Zuckerberg makes his biggest announcement on Facebook

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Facebook acquiring WhatsApp: If you can’t beat them, buy them out

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As a Bombay-bred Bandra boy Andre Borges is extremely passionate about local art, music and talent, which reflects in his writings.

As a Bombay-bred Bandra boy Andre Borges is extremely passionate about local art, music and talent, which reflects in his writings. This is only matched by his fascination for anything and everything in pop culture. With a refreshingly unique style, he loves to write about comic books, graphic novels, television shows, movies and more. Check out dnaindia.com/authors/andre-borgesto view his articles.

Indian entrepreneur Sunny Varkey to donate half his wealth to charity

(AFP photo - Agencies)
A 58-year-old Dubai-based Indian education entrepreneur has pledged to give away more than half of his wealth for helping teachers around the world by signing a popular philanthropic campaign.

Kerala-born Sunny Varkey joins the likes of Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg and fellow Indian Wipro chairman Azim Premji by signing Bill Gates's "The Giving Pledge" campaign.

"I am delighted to sign the Giving Pledge. I was fortunate that I grew up in a family where charity was ingrained in us from a very early age. Even when my father earned a small amount, a large portion was shared with the community we lived in, sometimes at the cost of our own comfort," Varkey said.

"To this day, our underlying philosophy remains that good giving 'pinches', meaning that the sacrifice you make has to be felt. Therein lies the appeal of the Giving Pledge to my family. I have also always believed that education is key to fixing so many of the world's greatest problems: violence, poverty and health," he added.

The Giving Pledge was founded by American magnate Warren Buffett and Microsoft founder Bill and wife Melinda Gates to help address society's most pressing problems by inviting the world's wealthiest individuals and families to commit to giving more than half of their wealth to philanthropic and charitable causes.

Varkey joins 136 billionaires from around the world who have signed the pledge, including Richard Branson, chairman and founder of Virgin Group and Ted Turner, founder of CNN. He is the founder of Gems Education, the world's leading education provider, which covers around 140,000 students across the world from over 153 nationalities. He is also founder of the Varkey Foundation, which trains teachers around the world and in 2014 launched the Global Teacher Prize, a USD 1 million prize to celebrate the teaching profession.

The Varkey Foundation's projects include teacher training and pupil education programmes in Africa, which has trained 12,000 teachers to date and aims to impact upon the lives of 10 million children. It also produces original research such as the 'Global Teacher Status Index'.

Nepal earthquake: Facebook raises $10 million in relief funds

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Net neutrality: Amazon India and MakeMyTrip commit to open internet

Image for representational purposes only
Facing an uproar over 'net neutrality', Facebook and Airtel on Friday said their 'free internet' platforms are open for all service providers and do not discriminate among users, even as more e-commerce majors including Amazon.in and MakeMyTrip committed themselves to the cause of 'open internet'.

Travel portal MakeMyTrip committed itself away from any such platforms, while global e-retail giant Amazon's Indian arm Amazon.in said it fully supports an "Open Internet for innovation to flourish and to promote the vision of digital India".

Net neutrality calls for equal treatment to all Internet traffic with no priority given to an entity or company based on payment to service providers like telecom companies, which is seen as discriminatory.

Finding himself on the receiving end of the 'net neutrality' debate, Facebook's chief Mark Zuckerberg said on Friday that Internet.org has benefitted "millions" of people on RCOM network in India and it is open for all mobile operators.

Asserting that universal connectivity and net neutrality "can and must" co-exist, Zuckerberg also said that he strongly disarees with the criticism that Internet.org offering some services for free goes against the spirit of net neutrality. He also said that internet.org will never create 'fast lanes' for a select few by throttling the other services.

Bharti Airtel on its part said it will always provide same treatment to every website and application irrespective of whether they are on its 'toll free' platform or not.

The company's MD and CEO (India and South Asia) Gopal Vital said that every website, content or application will always be given the same treatment on its network whether they are on the toll free platform or not.

A major public uproar has been continuing for last few days in India, especially on social media, alleging that platforms like internet.org of Facebook, which has Reliance Communications as partner in India, and Airtel Zero of telecom giant Bharti Airtel violate the principle of net neutrality.

Amid a raging debate, both the platforms have already seen some of their partners walking away, including Flipkart from Airtel Zero and entities like Cleartrip.com, Times Group and NDTV from internet.org.

Joining the debate, CPI(M) also passed a resolution in Visakhapatnam in favour of 'net neutrality'. Congress party has already spoken in support of 'net neutrality' campaign, while its youth wings yesterday took out a protest march.

Google Drives new search engine makes finding documents a breeze

Google Drive (dna Research & Archives)
Google Drive update makes locating files more convenient.

Google has released a new update for for it's cloud storage platform, Drive, that makes finding important documents much easier.

Google Drive is even faster and more accessible than ever before, with the latest update applying across all devices Now you can search through all your files at one go, no matter which device they came from. For multiple file types with the same name, you can narrow down the numberr of results by specifying the file format in the search box. You can also open advanced search boxes from the search menu, access files, or search Drive from the home screen of your iPhone using 3D Touch. Use the iOS search bar without having to open the Google Drive app.

You can also get better results by searching for shared files of the file owner using their name and/or email address, use advanced search options like the date a file was last modified, words it contains, or who it was shared with.

WhatsApp for iOS adds photo sharing from the cloud and pinch to zoom video

WhatsApp (dna Research & Archives)
The update for iPhone users adds a cloud storage integration for a variety of services.

WhatsApp has released an update for iOS that adds new file sharing and video features, with cloud storage integration.

The new version 2.12.14 allows you to share photos or videos from other apps on your smartphone, like Google Drive Dropbox or Microsoft OneDrive. Simply open "Photo Video Library" and tap the "Choose from another app" option. However, the feature is limited to only photo and video content; any spreadsheets or Word documents in your cloud storage are still unsupported by WhatsApp. In addition, there's also an updated photo and video browser, letting you pinch to zoom even videos as you watch them, and a variety of solid colour chat backgrounds.

You can find the latest version on iTunes here, though Android users will have to wait for an update.

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Here's how much Google paid the man who owned the domain name for 1 minute

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Review your Google security and get 2GB of free Drive storage

Google have announced that they are giving away 2GB of free Drive storage today to users who check and update their security settings.

(google)

The offer is a one-day only offer for users who complete the security review process.

Google have announced that they are giving away 2GB of free Drive storage today to users who check and update their security settings.

in a similar move to last year, the company will again be offering the free Google Drive storage space, with users who took part last year still able to claim the free space this year. Users just need to pass through the brief security checkup to review their account in order to claim the permanent Drive space. The process takes under a minute and includes a check of settings such as account recovery information and which apps have access to your Google account.

Google's offer is running at the same time as this year's Safer Internet Day 2016, designed to promote a safer and more secure use of the internet and technology.

MemoriesCable: This magical midget will make it easier to charge iPhones, iPads

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Soon, you can save all your WhatsApp messages on Google Drive

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Nextbit's "cloud-first" smartphone Robin preorders launch in India

Nextbit Robin (Image Courtesy: Nextbit)
The phone has been launched worldwide and uses a revolutionary new mechanism to save your storage space.

Nextbit has launched pre-orders of their "cloud-first" smartphone, Robin, inmultiple countries simultaneously, including India. The revolutionary new device is priced at US $399 (approximately Rs 26,000) and will cost another US $70 (Rs 4,600) to ship here.

Nextbit is a fairly new startup composed of ex-employees from Apple, Google, HTC, and Amazon. Their first project was developing a cloud-based data transfer service Baton, and that's the core functionality behind Robin, aside from it's impressive hardware specs. Robin packs a hexa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 808 processor with 3GB RAM, 32GB internal storage, and 100GB cloud storage. It has a 5.2-inch 1080p IPS LCD display with Gorilla Glasss 4, a 13MP rear cam (with phase detection autofocus and dual-tone flash) and a 5MP front cam. It's powered by a 2680mAh battery with Quick Charge support and has USB Type-C, and also sports dual front-facing speakers and a fingerprint sensor.

Now one important thing to note about the Robin, as we've explained before, is that it has no expandable storage. Instead, it makes use of that 100GB of cloud storage that you receive on purchase. Whenever you're connected to Wifi and power, everything on your phone backs up to the cloud server, which is separate from your Google Drive storage fyi. Robin then learns over time, which apps you haven't used in a while, and which photos and songs you don't access often. Those are then "removed" from your phone's internal storage, substituting them with greyed out icons instead. Whenever you want the app or content back, just tap the icon to restore and you're good to go.

You can read more about Nextbit's Robin here, or pre-order your own here. The phone is available in Mint and Midnight colours.

Microsoft slashes unlimited OneDrive storage as trolls upload 75TB

OneDrive
Paid consumers are now restrained to 1TB of cloud storage, and much much less for free users.

When Microsoft launched its OneDrive cloud storage service in October last year, it promised free unlimited storage to Office 365 subscribers, in a bid to draw customers away from the also free (and arguably more convenient) Google Drive. But in a recent blog post, Microsft says it's killing the unlimited storage in favour of a more restrained approach; and it's all thanks to one troll, (or maybe a few).

Thestates that one or more users took advantage of Microsoft's generosity (or naivete, however you see it) and uploaded files in the range of a ridiculous 75TB! The files in question were backups of numerous PCs as well as a collection of DVR recordings. According to the company, that's about 14,000 times the average user's cloud storage usage. As such, they said, "Instead of focusing on extreme backup scenarios, we want to remain focused on delivering high-value productivity and collaboration experiences that benefit the majority of OneDrive users."

So, to remedy the impracticality of their cloud storage offerings, Microsoft has killed the unlimited storage, and is offering Office 365 Home, Personal, or University subscribers 1TB of space. The 100GB and 200GB paid plan options for new users are also going away by early 2016, and will be replaced with a 50 GB plan for US $1.99 per month. In addition, the 15GB free OneDrive storage will be replaced by a 5GB limit for both existing and new users, and the 15GB camera roll bonus storage is going away for good. All of these changes will fall into place by early 2016.

But don't worry, if you're over the limit your files won't disappear overnight. If you're an Office 365 subscriber with more than 1TB of data uploaded to the cloud, you'll be notified of the limit and be able to keep the extra storage space for 12 months. Additionally, if the new storage restraints aren't something you're willing to take lying down, Microsoft has assured a pro-rated refund. The same time frame holds for free users; you'll be able to keep your storage in excess of 5GB for 12 months (once the changes hit in 2016) and you you can also redeem a free one-year Office 365 Personal subscription, which includes 1 TB of OneDrive storage. If you happen to have the cancelled 100GB or 200GB paid storage plan, nothing changes for you.

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40 years of Apple: Stronger than ever and still a trend-setter

Apple's hit products -- the Mac, the iPod, the iPhone and the iPad -- command a cult-like following.

(AFP photo - Kena Betancur)

As Apple turns 40, we take a look at its long and varied history with the tech industry.

Apple celebrates its 40th anniversary this week at the top of its game, as the Silicon Valley legend that sprang out of Steve Jobs' garage to reshape modern life with its trend-setting gadgets.

Jobs, the late tech-savvy marketing genius, and Steve Wozniak, who invented the Apple computer, helped revolutionize how people use technology, and formed what would become the world's largest corporation with an eye-popping US $53 billion in annual profits. The two college dropouts created the company that has changed the way people use computers, listen to music, communicate on the go, and made people at home in a world of "apps" tailored for work, play, education, health and more.

Apple's hit products -- the Mac, the iPod, the iPhone and the iPad -- command a cult-like following, long after the company's humble beginning in Jobs' Cupertino, California garage on April 1, 1976. "Apple has defined modern Internet lifestyle," said Tim Bajarin, president of Silicon Valley analyst firm Creative Strategies. While other firms had major impacts on specific technologies or devices, "Apple had the greatest influence on the broadest range of consumer electronics," Bajarin said.

Before changing the world with the iPhone and iPad, Apple transformed home computing with the Macintosh. The friendly desktop machine referred to as the "Mac" and, importantly, the ability to control it by clicking on icons with a "mouse," opened up computing to non-geeks in much the way that touchscreens later allowed almost anyone to get instantly comfortable with smartphones or tablets. The Macintosh computer, introduced in 1984, was at the core of a legendary rivalry between late Apple co-founder Jobs and Microsoft mastermind Bill Gates. "Apple heavily influenced the market with the Mac by introducing the mouse and the graphical user interface," Bajarin said, referring to the then novel notion of controlling computers by clicking icons instead of typing commands using software speak.

Cult of Apple

Apple went on to "rewrite" the music market with the iPod; made the smartphone a mass market staple with the iPhone, and took tablets mainstream with the iPad. Apple Watch quickly took the lead in the smartwatch market, despite making its debut later than those of rivals.

While Apple did not invent MP3 players, smartphones, tablets or smartwatches, its creations combined beauty, ease-of-use and capabilities that won zealous fans. Jobs, who died in 2011 at the age of 56, was renowned for an uncompromising drive to combine technology with design to make products that were intuitive and hassle-free. "Apple has taught us the supremacy of user experience and brand passion," Forrester analyst Frank Gillett told AFP. "Apple devices don't just work great, they inspire allegiance. The Apple brand inspires passion on both ends of the spectrum."

Gillett recalled early Apple days when loyalty to Apple or Windows computers was the type of topic that could easily trigger clashes in San Francisco cafes. "It is Apple's obsessive attention to detail, premium products that for some are status symbols," the analyst said. "It becomes brand fashion, with people throwing themselves into a community."

Twists and turns

Apple's path to becoming the world's most valuable company was beset by surprising twists and turns, including product flops as well as board room machinations that resulted in Jobs being ousted for a time as chief. "It has been a remarkable story of peaks and crises that got us here," Gillett said. "It is a remarkable story of reinvention."

The analyst wondered whether Apple stepping to the front lines in a battle over privacy and security of digital data on smartphones under chief executive Tim Cook will eventually be seen as another of the notable moments in its history. The US government's unexpected retreat in its campaign to force Apple to help unlock an attacker's iPhone may only postpone an inevitable battle over encryption and data protection, say analysts. Federal prosecutors and Apple spent weeks trading a volley of legal briefs related to the FBI's demand that the tech company help investigators unlock the phone used by Syed Farook, who died in a shootout after carrying out a deadly December attack in San Bernardino, California with his wife.The case ended in a stalemate, but many expect the debate on encryption to resume.

Apple early this year raised the spectre of the end of a technological era after reporting the slowest growth sales ever of its market-leading, life-changing iPhone and warning it expects worse to come. Many analysts say Apple is evolving from a device-making superstar racking up dizzying financial quarters to a company that can make a sizable and steady income from selling apps, digital music and more to the huge number of people using its devices. Apple services include iTunes, iCloud, Apple TV, and the App Store along with Apple Pay.

Apple also has a war chest of some US $215 billion in cash and securities, most of it overseas. The company will move into its new "spaceship" design campus next year, according to Cook. "We are looking forward to moving," Cook said at a press event. "We can't wait to see what is in store for the next 40 years and share it with you."

HP launches revamped Chromebook 14 with improved battery life

HP Chromebook 14
The new Chromebook also packs an upgraded Celeron processor now.

HP has announced a new Chromebook from their stables, the revamped Chromebook 14. The new device has been engineered to significantly improve it's battery life

The HP Chromebook 14 has a 14-inch BrightView display, available in HD(1366x768), and FHD (1920x1080) variants. It packs a 4th gen Intel Celeron 2955U processor with 2GB RAM. It has 16GB of SSD storage on board, with 100GB of Google Drive storage available on purchase, for two years. It's battery life is upped to nine hours, and is 17.84mm, weighing 1.7 kg. You can get the HD version for US $279 (approximately Rs 18,000), and the 1080p version for US $299 (approximately Rs 19,500) in Turbo Silver and Sky Blue.

The new HP Chromebook 14 will be available from November 8 in the US and on HP's website.

Apple co-founder no longer recognises the company he built, criticises it over Apple Watch

Steve Wozniak (Getty Images)
“I love my Apple Watch, but - it’s taken us into a jewellery market."
Steve Wozniak, Apple co-founder said he no longer recognises the company he built, according to The Guardian .

Wozniak criticises company over Apple Watch and says it has taken the company into a jewellery market.

He told in an interview on Reddit , "I love my Apple Watch, but - it’s taken us into a jewellery market where you’re going to buy a watch between $500 or $1,100 based on how important you think you are as a person."

"The only difference is the band in all those watches. Twenty watches from $500 to $1,100. The band’s the only difference? Well this isn’t the company that Apple was originally, or the company that really changed the world a lot," he added further.

On the contrary, Wozniak had strong words of support for the company over its battle with FBI over encryption and security on iPhones.

He said, "I come from the side of personal liberties. But there are also other problems."

According to The Guardian he further added, "Twice in my life I wrote things that could have been viruses. I threw away every bit of source code. I just got a chill inside. These are dangerous, dangerous things, and if some code gets written in an Apple product that lets people in, bad people are going to find their way to it, very likely."

Although he criticised the company over its Watch but he holds strong regard for Tim Cook. He said, "He is continuing a strong tradition that Steve Jobs was known for of making good products that help people do things they want to do in their life."

He even supported Apple's current plans on self-driving car division and said, "The car market makes total sense to me for Apple, but the important thing is that I hope if they get off on a product, something that they could sell and make a lot of money for but is not ‘insanely great’ as Steve jobs would say, Apple should drop it and start over."

He left Apple in 1981 after a disastrous plane crash.

Apple to unveil new iPhone, iPad models on Monday

(Reuters)
The company is widely expected to release a small-screen iPhone to encourage replacement of the 5S and 5C models, which have four-inch displays.

New iPhone and iPad models likely to be unveiled on Monday are aimed at helping Apple keep momentum in the fast-evolving mobile device market.

The media gathering at the company's intimate Town Hall auditorium in Silicon Valley will also give Apple a chance to restate its case for fighting the US government demand that it break into an attacker's iPhone.

Apple is widely expected to release a small-screen iPhone to encourage replacement of the 5S and 5C models, which have four-inch displays. The new device is to be called the iPhone SE or 5SE, reports said.

This would help Apple in a traditionally slow season before the likely upgrades to the large-screen iPhone 6 family later this year.

But in keeping with its practice, Apple has been tight-lipped about what it will reveal.

ALSO READ Apple says FBI out to 'rewrite history' in iPhone case

A message on copies of the invitations posted online simply states "Let us loop you in," prompting some to speculate that new bands for the Apple Watch would be among the announcements.

A four-inch screen iPhone which boasts improvements under the hood could help spur replacements.

ALSO READ Tim Cook speaks out against FBI call to break into iPhone: "This is about the future"

Such an iPhone would be "an incremental positive" for Apple, ensuring that lovers of the company's smaller smartphones don't switch to rival devices powered by Android software, RBC Capital Markets said in a note to investors.

RBC projected that sales of a new handset would tally between 10 million to 15 million annually, giving Apple fans an option for upgrading before an iPhone 7 debuts later in the year.

The new iPhone will likely be priced to shore up the low-end of Apple's line but not to compete in the budget-priced smartphone market, according to analysts.

"I am not expecting a ton of surprises," Creative Strategies analyst Ben Bajarin said of what Apple has in store for Monday.

"The biggest news will be pricing for the newer iPhone." If Apple lowers the price for the new device -- existing big-screen iPhones start at around $650 (nearly Rs 43,225) -- it may be able to expand to new segments of consumers.

"I suspect this is far more about boosting off-season sales than it is about introducing a new iPhone at a dramatically lower price point, for example, for emerging markets," said Jan Dawson of Jackdaw Research in a blog post.

But Dawson said the new handset could be priced as low as $450 (nearly Rs 29,925) without subsidy to help Apple make inroads in new markets.

Here's what to expect from Apple's March 21 event

(Reuters)
What to look forward to at the Apple event.

Technology enthusiasts around the world are eagerly waiting for Apple's March 21 event, where the tech giant would showcase new iPhone, iPad pro, Apple Watch bands and updates to the Apple Pay.

The iPhone SE is expected to be smaller in size. The new 4-inch iPhone is expected to be a mixture of the iPhone 6 and 6S but in a body resembling an iPhone 5.

The new iPad pro would have 9.7-inch model with four speakers, stylus support, additional RAM and a faster processor, and would be available in a 128GB storage capacity, the Verge quoted 9to5Mac.

The new Apple Watch band is expected to come in new colour variants and potentially made out of new materials or in partnership with additional high-fashion brands.

Apple to unveil new iPhone and iPad on March 21

(Apple - Image Courtesy)
Apple on Thursday sent out invitations to a press event at which it is expected to unveil new iPhone and iPad models.

In keeping with its practice, Apple revealed little about the event other than it will take place on March 21 at the company's campus in the Silicon Valley city of Cupertino in California.

A message on copies of the invitations posted online simply states "Let us loop you in."

Rumours have been circulating for weeks that Apple is poised to introduce upgraded versions of its small-screen iPhone and of the iPad, with the new tablet perhaps tailored for use by businesses.

A four-inch screen iPhone that looks similar to the iPhone 5s on the outside by boasts improvements under the hood is expected to get the spotlight at the event, along with an iPad with a screen slightly less than 10 inches diagonally.

ALSO READ That practice of closing apps in iOS? Apple says it plays no role in saving battery life

The iPad may have keyboard and stylus features aimed at making it more attractive for getting work done. Apple has been trying to ignite sales of its tablets, which declined in the final quarter or last year.

Apple has partnered with IBM on iPad applications for use on the job, and Microsoft has tailored versions of its productivity software for the tablet.

ALSO READ Apple rumoured to cut price of the iPhone 5s by half

The press event later this month is also expected to feature fashionable new bands for Apple Watch.

Apple has not publicly released sales figures for its Apple Watch, but IDC estimated the company sold 11.6 million of the wearable computing devices last year.

ALSO READ Apple to livestream their 21 March event--here’s how you can watch it

That gave the California giant a market share of around 15 percent, even though its smartwatch sales began in June of last year.

The media event will come a day before Apple faces off with the FBI in federal court in Southern California over whether the company can be compelled to help break into a locked iPhone used by one of the San Bernardino attackers.

Digital rights activists warn that the issue provides little middle ground--that once law enforcement gains a "back door," there would be no way to close it.

But FBI Director James Comey told a congressional panel that some answers are needed because "there are times when law enforcement saves our lives, rescues our children."

BlackBerry to launch two mid-range Android smartphones in the future

The new smartphones will be the followup to BlackBerry's first ever Android smartphone, the Priv.

(BlackBerry)

The company CEO said the new phones would cost between US $300 to $400.

After the launch of their premium smartphone earlier, the Priv, earlier in January, BlackBerry is now stating it's planning to launch two mid-range Android smartphones in the future.

In an interview with The National, company CEO John Chen said BlackBerry plans to launch two more followups to their first Android offering, but didn't offer a window for those release dates. However, Chen does go on to say that one of the phones will sport just a touchscreen, while the other will resemble the Priv more, in that it will also have a QWERTY keyboard. And while specs were kept off the table, he did add that both phones would be priced anywhere between US $300 to $400, that is Rs 20,000 to Rs 26,000 give or take a few hundred.

Also Read: First Impressions: The ‘Privilege Privacy’ BlackBerry Priv

Of course, while the Priv's US price launch price was $699 (Rs 46,000), the price tag in India was a significantly higher Rs 62,990, so we can expect the India prices for the new phones to be closer to Rs 36,000 - Rs 42,000. BlackBerry has always prided itself on it's phone design, marketing the device to enterprises and businessmen with a steep price tag. However, Chen seems to think that price tag is now something they can no longer push so hard, as evidenced by the price tag on the Priv being lowered from $699 to $649. This fact, combined with BlackBerry's steadily dwindling sales numbers, is likely why the company is now trying to market to a mid-range customer.

Global wearables market still growing, led by FitBit and Apple

File photo if the FitBit Blaze (AFP photo - Davic McNew)
An IDC survey indicated a major spike in sales of werable devices in the the fourth quarter of last year.

The global market for connected wearable devices accelerated at the end of 2015, with FitBit pacing the leaders and Apple closing ground, a survey showed Tuesday.

The IDC survey found fourth quarter sales of wearables such as fitness trackers and smartwatches surged 126.9 percent compared with a year earlier, with 27.4 million units. For the full year, sales of wearables sales were up 171.6 percent at 78.1 million devices.

The jump in sales shows "that wearables are not just for the technophiles and early adopters, wearables can exist and are welcome in the mass market," said IDC's Ramon Llamas. "And since wearables have yet to fully penetrate the mass market, there is still plenty of room for growth in multiple vectors: new vendors, form factors, applications, and use cases. This will help propel the market further."

Market leader FitBit sold 8.1 million units in the fourth quarter, for a 29.5 percent share, IDC said. Even though FitBit sales grew more than 50 percent, its leadership is under assault from other vendors, notably Apple and Chinese maker Xiaomi. Apple has not publicly released sales figures for its Apple Watch, but IDC estimated the company sold 4.1 million in the fourth quarter and 11.6 million for the year. That gave the California giant a market share of around 15 percent for both periods, even though its smartwatch sales began in June.

Xiaomi was number three for the final quarter of the year with sales of 2.7 million units and a market share of 9.7 percent, paced by sales growth of 258 percent. For the full year, Xiaomi held the number two spot, with a 15.4 percent share, paced by sales of its fitness tracker selling for as little as $11. Among the other major vendors, Samsung was number four for the past quarter with a 4.9 percent share and Garmin fifth with 3.5 percent.

IDC's Jitesh Ubrani said he sees newer devices coming into the wearables market, with "fashion and design" playing a key role. "The wearables market isn't just about smartwatches and fitness bands," he said. "Though the top five certainly dominate with wrist-worn devices, there's been an immense amount of growth in other form factors like clothing, footwear, and eyewear -- form factors that arguably require even more fashion sense than watches or bands."

End of an era? Apple warns iPhone sales to fall for first time

Apple Watch (AFP photo - JOSH EDELSON)
The company is expecting business from the sale of iPhones, its major revenue stream, to drop in the next few months.

Apple raised the spectre of the end of a technological era after reporting Tuesday the slowest growth sales ever of its iPhone, and warning it expects worse to come.

The California technology colossus said it expects to see its first decline in iPhone sales in the current quarter, when it will be compared to three months of blockbuster sales in the same period last year. "We do think that iPhone units will decline in the quarter," Apple chief executive Tim Cook said during an earnings call with analysts. But Apple, which Tuesday posted a record quarterly profit despite the iPhone faltering for the first time since it was launched in 2007, remains optimistic about the overall smartphone market.

Apple plans to continue investing in smartphones despite economic woes dragging on many countries and a strong US dollar eating into its revenue, according to Cook. "There are still a lot of people in the world who will buy smartphones and we ought to be able to win over our fair share of those," Cook said.

A billion Apple gadgets

Net income for the quarter ending December 26 was two percent higher than the same period a year earlier at US $18.4 billion, while revenue of US $75.9 billion set another record for the company, also edging up two percent. The results were largely in line with expectations that sales of iPhones -- the driver of two-thirds of Apple revenue -- had peaked, and that the company would need to find new sources of growth. Apple shares have slid 20 percent since last year on these concerns. In after-market trade Tuesday the stock was down more than two percent at US $97.76.

"Our team delivered Apple's biggest quarter ever, thanks to the world's most innovative products and all-time record sales of iPhone, Apple Watch and Apple TV," Cook said in an earnings release. "The growth of our services business accelerated during the quarter to produce record results, and our installed base recently crossed a major milestone of one billion active devices." Apple reported that, overall, a billion iPhones, iPads, Macintosh computers, iPod touch devices, Apple TV units, and Apple Watch wearable computers had "engaged" with its services in the past three months. In the fiscal quarter, Apple sold 74.8 million iPhones -- a record, but only fractionally higher than the 74.5 million in the same period last year and the slowest growth since the lifestyle-altering handsets were introduced in 2007.

China revenue climbs

Revenue in "Greater China" was up 14 percent for Apple but weaker in the US and Japan. A big question for Apple is whether it can continue to drive sales growth in a sluggish global economy, amid increasing competition from rival smartphone makers. Apple said that it expected revenue in the current quarter to be between US $50 billion and US $53 billion. That would probably mean a decline from the US $58 billion in the same period of 2015.

Apple has been diversifying with new offerings in music and is counting on growth from its Apple Watch and accessories. The company reported sales of "other products" -- including the smartwatch and Beats music products -- was US $4.35 billion in the past quarter, but did not break down those figures. Services accounted for US $6 billion. Sales of iPads saw a 56 percent drop in revenues and 25 percent dip in unit sales as the market for tablet computers cooled.

Avi Greengart, at the research firm Current Analysis, said things did not appear that bad for the world's biggest company by market value. "Pretty great to be Apple," he said in a tweet. "Your main product (iPhone) is flat, most recent hit (iPad) is down 25 percent, R&D expenses up, yet profits rise."

Apple may launch new watch models in March

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Facebook beta testing weather updates for UK Android and iOS users

Facebook app weather forecast (Piet Brauer - Twitter)
The feature displays the current temperature as weell as a forecast for the rest of the day.

Facebook has diversified with a lot of add-on services over the past couple of years; Live video lets you connect with fans and viewers on the platform in real time, and Instant Articles brings news more quickly to readers, to name just two. And now, it looks like Facebook is beta testing another minor feature.

According to The Next Web, some users in the UK are reporting that weather updates are popping up at the top of their News Feed, in both the Android and iOS apps. The update displays a small description of the weather, alongside an animation, and links to a larger Google-card-like page. Here, it lists the current temperature, as well as the min/max temperature forecast for the rest of the day.

In addition, below the forecast is a link to the Weather.comwebsite, though the report states it isn’t loading properly in the in-app browser. Facebook has yet to release any confirmation on the possible new app.

Apple is dominating the SmartWatch industry

Apple dominates SmartWatch industry (Getty Images - Image Courtesy)
New date from Jupiter research shows that more than 50% of SmartWatches sold globally are made by Apple.

Jupiter research released data that shows the current trending smartwatches. The report states that Apple Watches accumulated about 52% of global smartwatch shipments last year, despite only launching in April. This dwarfed Android Wear, which only consisted of about 10% of global sales.

Apple's biggest competitor and former sales leader, Samsung didn't do that well either. The Tizen-powered Gear S2 smartwatch was not received well globally although, it should be noted that the smartwatch was only available for purchase in November.

The remaining smartwatch sales come from a range of relatively newcomers like Martian and Razor that develop devices which are far cheaper and do not offer the same array of application that you see from Apple and Samsung.

ALSO READ Apple Watch (Sport Edition) review: 30 days with the Apple Watch

Apple sold about four million units of smartwatches in the fourth quarter of last year and is estimating sales of another 10 million units for 2016.

Twitter adds button to share tweets in direct messages

A Twitter update on April 5, 2016, makes it easier to send Direct Messages.

(AFP photo - File Photo)

Twitter has added a button that lets you add animated snippets referred to as GIFs, emojis, and share tweets in direct messages.

Twitter on Tuesday added a button that lets people easily share 'tweets' in direct messages.

The move came as an acknowledgement of the appeal of one-to-one connections to users of the popular one-to-many messaging service, and as Twitter worked to ramp use of its platform.

Millions of direct messages are sent daily at Twitter, and the number of tweets shared privately tripled in the second half of last year, according to product manager Somas Thyagaraja.

"With all this interest, we've also heard from many of you that it could be easier to share a Tweet using Direct Message," Thyagaraja said.

"So now--in just a few taps--you can share unique Twitter content from your timeline right into your private conversation."

ALSO READ North Korea blocks Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and other websites

Twitter has gradually enhanced its direct messaging option by letting people add animated snippets referred to as GIFs or emotion-capturing symbols called 'emojis,' as well as the option to send lengthy missives.

The new 'message' button was added to Twitter applications tailored for mobile devices powered by Apple or Android software, according to Thyagaraja.