Reporting
Court ruling paves the way for Facebook to settle its facial recognition lawsuit
Facebook won preliminary approval late on Wednesday from a federal court for settlement of a lawsuit that claimed it illegally collected and stored biometric data of millions of users without their consent. The social media company had in July raised its settlement offer by $100 million to $650 million in relation to the lawsuit, in which Illinois users accused it of violating the U.S. state’s Biometric Information Privacy Act. The revised settlement agreement resolved the court’s concerns, leading to the preliminary approval of the class action settlement, Judge James Donato wrote in an order filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California. “Preliminary approval of the amended stipulation of class action settlement, Dkt. No. 468, is granted, and a final approval h...
Lyon return empty-handed with prospect of losing key players
Had Olympique Lyonnais’ Memphis Depay and Karl Toko Ekambi found the back of the net in the opening 16 minutes against Bayern Munich on Wednesday, the Champions League may have had its first ever all-French final. Instead, Paris St Germain will now face the German champions while Lyon return home empty-handed and without the opportunity of righting those wrongs next season after they failed to qualify for Europe’s premier club competition. Ligue 1 was the only top-flight league from the ‘Big Five’ to prematurely end its season due to the COVID-19 pandemic, leaving Lyon in seventh place on a points-per-game basis — thereby missing out on the Europa League as well. The 3-0 scoreline flatters Bayern as Lyon had their chances but playing in only their second semi-final on the big stage, their ...
Former Real Madrid chief expects club to send Gareth Bale out on loan
Real Madrid may consider sending Welsh forward Gareth Bale out on loan and pay part of his salary to end the agony for both the player and the club amid their rift, the Spanish team’s former president Ramon Calderon said. The post Former Real Madrid chief expects club to send Gareth Bale out on loan appeared first on TODAY. You Deserve to Make Money Even When you are looking for Dates Online. So we reimagined what a dating should be. It begins with giving you back power. Get to meet Beautiful people, chat and make money in the process. Earn rewards by chatting, sharing photos, blogging and help give users back their fair share of Internet revenue.
Security forces head off anti-government protests in Zimbabwe
Streets were deserted and businesses shut in Zimbabwe’s two main cities on Friday after security forces were deployed to prevent anti-government marches called by activists over corruption and economic hardship. Protesters stayed away. Job Sikhala, an opposition lawmaker and one of the protest organisers, said the heavy security presence showed a state afraid of its citizens. He added: “Protracted demonstrations will be the way forward.” He is among more than a dozen activists who are in hiding and who police say they are seeking for promoting Friday’s protests. In Bulawayo and central Harare, the capital, businesses were shut as police and soldiers patrolled the streets. Shops also stayed shut in some Harare townships, including Mbare – a hotbed of past protests. President Emmerson Mnanga...
OECD: South Africa economy could contract 8.2% if second coronavirus wave hits
South Africa’s economy could contract 8.2% this year, and grow just 0.6% in 2021, if a second wave of COVID-19 cases hits the country and its main trading partners, the OECD said on Friday. If a second wave of infections is avoided, the economy will contract 7.5% in 2020 before rebounding 2.5% next year, the OECD said in a report on Africa’s most industrialised economy. South Africa was in recession before the pandemic struck, with recurring power cuts by struggling state utility Eskom and weak business confidence dampening economic activity. President Cyril Ramaphosa’s government has promised to fast-track reforms to raise economic growth potential, but some investors are becoming restless about the pace of change. “South Africa cannot afford to delay reforms. It is essential to undertake...
Fabio Capello: Real Madrid’s Eden Hazard has sunk under weight of expectations
Eden Hazard has struggled to deal with the weight of the Real Madrid shirt following his high-profile move from Chelsea, former Real manager Fabio Capello has said. Hazard joined the Spanish club from Chelsea on a five-year contract for a reported 100 million euros ($116.54 million) ahead of the 2019-20 season. The Belgium international inspired Chelsea to two Premier League trophies during his time at Stamford Bridge but has failed to hit similar heights in Spain, with injuries limiting him to 21 appearances in all competitions this season. “He hasn’t been the player he was at Chelsea and he was injured for a long time, he hasn’t adapted,” Capello told Marca. “I’ve always thought of him as a great player but the Real shirt weighs heavily and Hazard has sunk this year. It’s clear that he’l...
Ethiopian Airlines cargo plane catches fire at Shanghai airport, no casualties
An Ethiopian Airlines’ Boeing 777 cargo plane caught fire while loading cargo at Shanghai Pudong International Airport on Wednesday, the airline said, adding that fire has been contained and none of the crew or ground staff were harmed. The cause of the incident was under investigation, Ethiopian Airlines said in a Facebook post. The aircraft was on a regular scheduled cargo service from Shanghai to Sao Paulo-Santiago, it added. Pictures and videos circulating on Chinese social media showed heavy smoke pouring from an Ethiopian aircraft, and a large section of the upper fuselage appeared scorched. After the fire broke, flights bound for Shanghai Pudong International Airport were diverted to Shanghai Hongqiao International Airport, said aviation data provider Variflight. Get more stories li...
Leeds beat Derby 3-1, Barnsley score late to keep survival bid alive
Champions Leeds United mounted a second half comeback to win 3-1 at Derby County while Barnsley’s hopes of staying up in the second-tier Championship were given a huge boost when they beat Nottingham Forest 1-0 with a stoppage time goal on Sunday. Leeds, who sealed promotion on Friday and won the title on Saturday after West Bromwich Albion and Brentford failed to close the gap, extended their lead to eight points with one more round of fixtures left. Derby, who gave Leeds a guard of honour, took the lead when Chris Martin pounced on a pass inside the box and curled his shot past the keeper. The visitors struck back two minutes later when Pablo Hernandez fired home from the edge of the box. Tyler Roberts then threaded a weighted pass through the Derby defence to find Jamie Shackleton and t...
South Africa Super Rugby teams back in training on Monday
South Africa’s Super Rugby franchises will be allowed to start training next week, officials confirmed on Friday, a step closer to a return to the playing field after a frustrating four months. The game has been suspended in the country since March due to the COVID-19 pandemic, with South African Rugby having to sit idle as domestic competitions took flight in New Zealand and Australia. “This is an important first step back to playing, and we have taken it carefully to ensure full compliance and having thoroughly interrogated the regulations with government,” SA Rugby chief executive Jurie Roux said in a statement. “Contact training will not be permitted for the moment but the players will be allowed back onto the field with a rugby ball and back into the gym – while observing strict proto...
Arsenal beat Liverpool 2-1 to end hopes of record points haul
Arsenal capitalised on shocking errors from Liverpool’s Virgil van Dijk and Alisson to beat the champions 2-1 at The Emirates on Wednesday and end their hopes of a record points tally for the Premier League season. The loss means Liverpool, on 93 points, can now only stretch that tally to 99, one short of Manchester City’s record. Arsenal’s first win against Liverpool since April 2015 lifts them one place to ninth in the table on 53 points. The visitors created all the early pressure and opened the scoring in the 20th minute when Sadio Mane lashed in his 17th goal of the season from close range. Yet the home side, playing without their leading scorer Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, were handed a free pass back into the game 12 minutes later when Van Dijk made a back pass straight into the path ...
Pep Guardiola: Manchester City deserve an apology
Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola said his team deserved an apology, after their two-year UEFA ban from European football was overturned by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) — a verdict he called “a good day for football”. Guardiola said the club’s reputation had been damaged by the furore around allegations that they broke Financial Fair Play (FFP) rules and fired back at comments from rival managers Jose Mourinho and Juergen Klopp. Mourinho had described the CAS decision to fine City 10 million euros ($11.39 million) for non-cooperation with the investigation as “disgraceful”. “Maybe. The thing about the money, maybe. But Jose and all the managers should know that we were damaged. We should be apologised (to). Because, like I said many times, if we did something wrong, we will...
Google announces $10 billion ‘digitization fund’ for India
Agence France-Presse Alphabet’s Google on Monday said it will spend around $10 billion in India over the next five to seven years through equity investments and tie-ups, marking its biggest commitment to a key growth market. The investments will be done through a so-called digitization fund, highlighting Google’s focus on the rapid pace of growth of apps and software platforms in India, one of the world’s biggest internet services markets. “We’ll do this through a mix of equity investments, partnerships, and operational, infrastructure and ecosystem investments,” Sundar Pichai, CEO of Alphabet, said on a webcast during the annual “Google for India” event. “This is a reflection of our confidence in the future of India and its digital economy.” Google has already made some direct and indirec...
