The Walt Disney Company is preparing to create its own metaverse, CEO Bob Chapek has said in an earnings call after the release of fourth-quarter results.

- Our efforts to date are merely a prologue to a time when we'll be able to connect the physical and digital worlds even more closely, allowing for storytelling without boundaries in our own Disney metaverse - he said late Wednesday.
- And we look forward to creating unparalleled opportunities for consumers to experience everything Disney has to offer across our products and platforms wherever the consumer may be - he added.
Metaverse, the digital concept of shared 3D spaces linked into a virtual universe, has recently become a popular topic after Facebook rebranded itself as Meta.
Touted as the next step in the evolution of the internet, metaverse aims to offer virtual universes for meetings, movies, entertainment, concerts, and especially gaming.
With its immense portfolio of movies, music, and entertainment, Disney has already been offering its users virtual reality experiences within the Star Wars franchise.
Chapek said Disney has a significant presence in the physical world through theme parks and resorts, in addition to media entertainment in the digital world, adding that emerging technologies are enabling the transformation of the way people interact and experience products in both worlds.
The firm's streaming service, however, saw user growth slowing in the third quarter of this year, approaching its second anniversary.
Disney+ could only add 2.1 million new subscribers in the July-September period, down from 12.6 million added in the previous quarter.
Total subscribers reached 118.1 million as of Oct. 2 -- up 60% from 73.7 million a year ago -- according to the financial results statement.
Its revenue climbed 25.8% to $18.5 billion, from $14.7 billion, year-over-year.
The Disney stock price was down 6.1% on Thursday before the opening bell on the New York Stock Exchange.

Emerging technologies enabling transformation of way people interact, experience products, Bob Chapek says

Disney has already been offering its users virtual reality experiences within the Star Wars franchise

Walt Disney preparing to create its own metaverse

Thrill-seekers might soon be able to get their adrenaline kicks -- and envy-inducing Instagram snaps -- from the final frontier, as space tourism finally lifts off. 

All you'll need is a bit of patience. And a lot of money.
Here's a rundown of where things stand.

Two companies are offering short "suborbital" hops of a few minutes: Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin and Virgin Galactic, founded by Richard Branson.

Blue Origin's New Shepard rocket takes off vertically and the crew capsule detaches and crosses the Karman line (62 miles, or 100 kilometers, in altitude), before falling back to Earth with three parachutes.
Virgin Galactic uses a massive carrier plane, which takes off from a horizontal runway then drops a rocket-powered spaceplane. This in turn soars to over 50 miles altitude before gliding back.
In both cases, up to six passengers are able to unbuckle from their seats to experience a few minutes of weightlessness and take in the view of Earth from space.&nbsp;&nbsp;

Virgin Galactic has said regular commercial flights will begin from 2022, following two more test flights. Their waiting list is already long, with 600 tickets so far sold.

But the company predicts it will eventually run up to 400 flights per year. Two seats on one of the first flights are up for grabs in a prize draw: registrations are open until September 1.
As for Blue Origin, no detailed calendar has been announced. 
-We're planning for two more flights this year, then targeting many more in 2022- a spokesperson told AFP.
Another way to get to space is via reality television. Space Hero, an upcoming show, says it plans to send the winner of a competition to the International Space Station (ISS) in 2023.&nbsp;

The first tickets sold by Virgin Galactic went for between $200,000 and $250,000 each, but the company has warned that the cost for future sales will go up.

Blue Origin hasn't announced prices. The anonymous winner of a public auction for a seat on the first crewed flight paid $28 million, but decided to defer their trip. 
It's not known what amount was bid for the seat secured by Dutch teen Oliver Daemen, who will fly in the auction winner's place.
The more "budget conscious" might consider spending $125,000 for a seat on Space Neptune: a capsule that offers 360 degree windows and is lifted to the upper atmosphere by a balloon the size of a football stadium.
Despite the promise of spectacular views, the balloon ascends only 19 miles -- far from the boundary of space, and weightlessness.
The 300 seats for 2024 have all been sold, but reservations are open for 2025.

<h2>Are the physical requirements tough?</h2>

No -- you're only expected to be in reasonable shape. Virgin Galactic's training lasts just five days.

Blue Origin promises to teach you everything you need to know "the day before you launch," and its first crewed flight includes pioneering aviator Wally Funk, who at 82 will become the oldest astronaut.
The company's requirements include being able to climb seven flights of stairs in under 90 seconds (the height of the launch tower) and being between 5'0" and 110 pounds (152 centimeters and 50 kilograms) and 6'4" and 223 pounds (193 cm and 100 kg).

Elon Musk's company is also getting into the space tourism game, but its plans involve journeys that are far longer. The costs are also predicted to be astronomical -- tens of millions of dollars.

In September, American billionaire Jared Isaacman has chartered a mission called Inspiration4 to take him and three other passengers into orbit around the Earth on a SpaceX Crew Dragon, launched into space by a Falcon 9 rocket. 
Then in January 2022, three businessmen will travel to the ISS with an experienced astronaut. The mission, named Ax-1, is being organized by the company Axiom Space, which has signed up for three other future flights with SpaceX. 
Elon Musk's company is also planning a trip to orbit for four people, organized by intermediary Space Adventures -- the same company in charge of the flight of the Japanese billionaire Yusaku Maezawa to the ISS in December, aboard a Russian Soyuz rocket. 
Maezawa is also supposed to take a trip around the Moon in 2023, this time aboard a rocket that is still under development by SpaceX, called Starship. 
He invited eight members of the public to join him -- but applications are now closed.

Two companies are offering short "suborbital" hops of a few minutes: Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin and Virgin Galactic, founded by Richard Branson

British billionaire Richard Branson experiences weightlessness aboard a Virgin Galactic spacecraft

How can you become a space tourist?

Princes William and Harry unveiled a new statue of their late mother Princess Diana on Thursday.

The unveiling of the new statue at Kensington Palace marked what would have been the 60th birthday of Diana.
-Prince William and Prince Harry have unveiled a statue of their mother, Diana, Princess of Wales, in the Sunken Garden at Kensington Palace on what would have been her 60th Birthday- a statement from the Kensington Palace said.
The two brothers commissioned the statue, which was designed by sculptor Ian Rank-Broadley, in 2017 as a tribute to their mother who died in 1997 in a car crash in Paris. The new statue depicts Diana with two young children alongside her, reflecting the charity work she had carried out. 
Diana had married Prince Charles, the heir apparent to the British throne in 1981, and after a separation, the marriage ended in divorce in 1996.
Her death came as a shock to the British nation as well as people around the world.
Thursday’s ceremony was the first public occasion since their grandfather and the queen’s husband Prince Philips’s funeral in April.
Harry, together with his wife, Meghan Markle had stepped away from their royal duties in 2020 and moved to the US shortly after.
Diana's brother, Charles Spencer was among those in the ceremony.

Ceremony marks what would have been 60th birthday of princes' late mother

The unveiling of the new statue at Kensington Palace marked what would have been the 60th birthday of Diana

Princes William, Harry unveil new Diana statue at Kensington Palace

A Los Angeles court denied Britney Spears' request to eject her father from a guardianship arrangement that gives him control of her affairs, US media reported on Thursday.

The decision comes a week after the singer made an impassioned plea to end the "abusive" conservatorship during which she said she has been medicated to control her behavior, prohibited from making decisions on friendships or finances, and prevented from having a contraceptive implant removed, despite wanting more children. 
The Los Angeles Superior Court ruling made on Wednesday was in connection to a request filed in September by Spears' lawyer to add wealth management firm Bessemer Trust to the conservatorship and remove her father Jamie Spears, CNN reported.
-The conservator's request to suspend James P. Spears immediately upon the appointment of Bessemer Trust Company of California as sole conservator of estate is denied without prejudice- Judge Brenda Penny said in court filings seen by CNN.
The decision did not take Spears' statement from last week into consideration. 
Spears' father has asked the court to investigate the music superstar's allegations that she was medicated with lithium and made to perform against her will, CNN reported. 
The revelation that the conservatorship is preventing her from removing a contraceptive IUD sparked outrage from fans and reproductive rights groups online.
Spears' emotional address by videolink was a rare insight into her personal life after her lawyer Samuel Ingham said in April that Spears wanted to directly address the court.
-I just want my life back. It's been 13 years and it's enough- Spears said in the 20-minute statement. 
The 39-year-old star's finances and personal life have been largely managed by Jamie Spears since her highly public breakdown more than a decade ago, leading some adoring fans to launch a "FreeBritney" online campaign in recent years.
Supporters have long scoured her social media accounts for hints about her well-being, and any sign that she may be eager to throw off the guardianship.

The decision comes a week after the singer made an impassioned plea to end the "abusive" conservatorship

Spears: -I just want my life back. It's been 13 years and it's enough

Britney Spears' father to stay on as guardian, US court rules

A South African woman who claimed to have given birth to 10 babies this month lied to the world because she was not pregnant and did not give birth to any children in recent times, authorities said Wednesday.

The Gauteng provincial government, which includes the cities of Johannesburg and Pretoria, said in a statement that it launched investigations this month after a local publication claimed that Gosiame Sithole, 37, had delivered 10 babies on June 7.
The publication claimed that Sithole delivered seven boys and three girls by caesarean section at an undisclosed hospital.
-None of the hospitals in the province – both private and public -- had any records of such births at their facility- the statement said.
Sithole’s alleged “miracle birth” excited the world, which believed she had set a new Guinness World Record after news of a Malian woman giving birth to nonuplets in Morocco last month.
But the secrecy surrounding the whereabouts of the mother and babies created serious doubts among some South Africans, with many wondering if the 10 miracle babies indeed existed.
Last week, the family of Tebogo Tsotetsi, Sithole’s boyfriend, said in a statement that he had confirmed to them that he has not seen the babies and had relied on his girlfriend, who called to inform him of their birth.
The statement further claimed that Tsotetsi had made several attempts to visit Sithole and the babies at the hospital, but she did not disclose her whereabouts to him or inform him of the condition of the babies.
-The family has resolved and concluded that there are no decuplets born between Tebogo Tsotetsi and Gosiame Sithole, until proven otherwise- it said.
The provincial government said its social development department social workers had reached out to Sithole with concern about her state of heath and her babies.
The statement further said they arranged for her to be admitted to Tembisa Hospital near Johannesburg for observation on June 18 and it was established by doctors that she did not give birth to any babies in recent times. It was also established that she was not pregnant in recent times.
Independent Media Group, which first broke the story, had stood by its version. The Gauteng provincial government said it was concerned by the conduct of Independent Media Group and has instructed the Attorney General to take legal action against the publication and Its Pretoria News editor Piet Rampedi.

Local authorities say so-called mother of 10 was not pregnant and has no history of recent births

The publication claimed that Sithole delivered seven boys and three girls by caesarean section at an undisclosed hospital

Woman’s claim of giving birth to 10 babies false

Elton John's long-running farewell tour was extended on Wednesday with a slew of new dates that are slated as his last ever shows in Europe and North America. 

The 74-year-old rocket man added a series of concerts in Britain and six in Europe, and will follow that with 20 stadium dates in the US and Canada. 
The Farewell Yellow Brick Road tour, which began in 2018, will conclude its US run at Dallas Stadium in Los Angeles, site of his legendary performances in 1975 when he was decked out in a shiny baseball uniform. 
-I'll be going out in the biggest possible way. I can't wait to see you all on the road one last time- the singer wrote on Twitter.
Many of the original 300 dates had to be postponed due to the pandemic and have been pushed back to late 2021. 
Currently, the last shows are scheduled for Auckland, New Zealand in early 2023.

Currently, the last shows are scheduled for Auckland, New Zealand in early 2023.

Elton John extends farewell tour in US, Europe

Lights, camera, real live audiences -- Milan fashion welcomes back actual people to its shows Friday, a sign the industry is ready to start turning the page on virtual formats adopted during the pandemic.

The numbers are still modest, with only Armani, Dolce &amp; Gabbana and Etro inviting an audience to their men's Spring/Summer 2022 collections.
-This is the dress rehearsal of the return to normalcy- Federica Trotta Mureau, editor of the Italian fashion magazine Mia Le Journal, told AFP. 
The shows represent baby steps but the effect of the live events, instead of the video presentations or short films relied on since early last year when coronavirus cut short the twice-yearly shows in Italy's business capital, would still be appreciated, Mureau said. 
"The lights that go out and come back on, the music that sounds as soon as the first models come out... it's an emotion that digital cannot give us," she said. 
Armani was the first in late May to announce the return of the public, after being the first to shut them out in February 2020. 
-I'm scared, like everyone else I think- 86-year-old Giorgio Armani said as the pandemic swept through Italy last year.

The bulk of the 47 fashion shows taking place over five days will remain digital. 

The president of the National Chamber for Italian Fashion, Carlo Capasa, called it "an important signal of recovery" that the government granted its request to allow in-person shows after June 15.
After months of stop-start measures, coronavirus restrictions in most of Italy have now been lifted thanks to falling infection rates, although masks are still compulsory in public and social distancing must be respected.
Capasa has estimated sales for the Italian fashion market will rise 17 percent this year to 80 billion euros ($95 billion), driven mostly by growth in China. Exports of "Made in Italy" fashion are expected to rise by 13 percent. 
But only in 2022 will the country's fashion industry regain its pre-pandemic levels, especially since orders during the first months of 2021 have fallen below expectations. 
Last year, revenue fell by 26 percent for the Italian industry, as stores shuttered and well-heeled tourists stayed home. 
So what will Milan's men be wearing next year?
After the grey winter and the gloom of the pandemic, colours found in nature such as light green, ocean blue, terracotta, sunshine yellow or fire red should prevail, according to Mureau. 
-Goodbye to sober colours and too punishing looks, the summer of 2022 in men's fashion will be marked by colour and exaggeration!- she predicted.&nbsp;

The numbers are still modest, with only Armani, Dolce & Gabbana and Etro inviting an audience to their men's Spring/Summer 2022 collections

Dolce & Gabbana are among those due to take the plunge with a return to live audiences at Milan fashion

Live audience 'baby steps' back to normality for Milan fashion

Solar panel "wings" spread out and two camera "eyes" pointing ahead, China's Mars rover Zhurong struck a birdlike pose as it explored the red planet in photos released by the country's space agency Friday.

Zhurong's touchdown in May was the first ever successful probe landing by any country on its first Mars mission -- a milestone in China's ascent to space superpower status.
The rover, named after a mythical Chinese fire god, has since been studying the topography of a vast Martian lava plain known as the Utopia Planitia.
Photos published by the China National Space Administration showed tracks in the red soil left by Zhurong, which the agency described as "China's imprint", after it drove onto the planet's surface form a landing platform adorned with a large Chinese flag. 
The six-wheeled, solar-powered, 240-kilogramme (530-pound) Zhurong is expected to spend three months taking photos, harvesting geographical data, and collecting rock samples.
The space agency said on Friday that the Mars mission's "engineering tasks were carried out smoothly as planned," and that the equipment were currently "in good condition."
China has now sent astronauts into space, powered probes to the Moon and landed a rover on Mars -- one of the most prestigious of all prizes in the competition for dominion of space.
The United States and Russia are the only other countries to have reached Mars, and only the former has operated a rover on the surface.
Several US, Russian and European attempts to land rovers on Mars have failed in the past, most recently in 2016 with the crash-landing of the Schiaparelli joint Russian-European spacecraft.
The latest successful arrival came in February, when US space agency NASA landed its rover Perseverance, which has since been exploring the planet.

Zhurong's touchdown in May was the first ever successful probe landing by any country on its first Mars mission

The Zhurong rover, named after a mythical Chinese fire god, has been studying the topography of a vast Martian lava plain known as the Utopia Planitia

Rover leaves 'China's imprint' on Mars

A replica of the Mona Lisa which was passionately defended by its owner in the 1960s as the original Leonardo de Vinci canvas is to go on sale this week in Paris, where it is expected to raise up to 300,000 euros ($365,000).

The painting is known as the "Mona Lisa Hekking", named after Raymond Hekking, an art dealer based in the south of France who cast doubt on the authenticity of the original masterpiece owned by the Louvre museum in Paris.
After buying his version in the Riviera town of Nice, Hekking succeeded in drawing art historians and journalists to his home to examine his purchase while insisting that the Louvre owned the fake.
Auction house Christie's is to put the work on sale on Friday, with the quality of the reproduction and the unusual back story setting the replica apart from other versions of one of the most copied paintings in the world.
-This work and its history illustrate the fascination that the Mona Lisa and the aura of Leonardo da Vinci have always held- the auction house says on its website, estimating the price at 200,000-300,000 euros.
The original Mona Lisa was stolen from the Louvre in 1911 by Italian Vincenzo Perugia, only to be returned three years later.
Hekking wrongly claimed that the returned canvas was not the original.
Upon his death in 1977, his replica was passed on to his family who have decided to put it up for sale.

Auction house Christie's is to put the work on sale on Friday, with the quality of the reproduction and the unusual back story setting the replica apart from other versions of one of the most copied paintings in the world

The painting is known as the "Mona Lisa Hekking", named after Raymond Hekking, an art dealer based in the south of France who cast doubt on the authenticity of the original masterpiece owned by the Louvre museum in Paris

Sale of Mona Lisa replica set to raise up to 300,000 euros

Meghan, Britain's Duchess of Sussex, has given birth to her second child, a baby girl, whom she and husband Prince Harry have named after Queen Elizabeth and his late mother Princess Diana.

Lilibet 'Lili' Diana Mountbatten-Windsor was born on Friday at the Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital in California, with Harry in attendance.
The birth follows a tumultuous year for the couple, who have stepped down from royal duties and moved to the United States to live more independent lives, but rarely been seen out of the public spotlight.
-On June 4th, we were blessed with the arrival of our daughter, Lili. She is more than we could have ever imagined, and we remain grateful for the love and prayers we’ve felt from across the globe- Harry and Meghan said in a statement.
-Thank you for your continued kindness and support during this very special time for our family.-Both mother and baby were doing well and were back at home, their press secretary said.
Lilibet was Queen Elizabeth's childhood nickname. Harry and Meghan's decision to name their daughter after the 95-year-old monarch came less than two months after the death of her husband Prince Philip, the royal family's patriarchal figure.
Diana, the former wife of Prince Charles and mother to Harry and his elder brother William, died in a Paris car crash in 1997.
Meghan, 39, announced she was expecting a girl during an explosive U.S. television interview in March with Oprah Winfrey, in which she accused the royal family of racism and said she had felt suicidal in the early days of her marriage.
The interview threw the family into crisis, deepening a rift between Harry and William, and with his father, heir-to-the throne Prince Charles.
Harry, 36, has spoken recently about how the trauma of the loss was compounded when he had to walk as a 12-year-old behind his mother Diana's coffin in her funeral cortege under the glare of the world's media.
Harry and Meghan's first child, Archie, was born in 2019.

Lilibet 'Lili' Diana Mountbatten-Windsor was born on Friday at the Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital in California, with Harry in attendance

Meghan and Harry name new baby daughter after Queen and Diana

Marcel Remy is the grand old man of Swiss Alpinists, and with his sure and steady progress as he conquers a climbing wall, few would realise he is 98-years-old.

Week in, week out, every Monday morning, Remy drives his old Toyota to the indoor climbing centre in Villeneuve on the eastern shores of Lake Geneva, where he meets his son Claude to plot a path to the top.
The veteran slowly puts on his climbing shoes and harness and having picked out his ascent route, makes his way to the 16-metre (52-foot) high wall.
-It gives me a lot of pleasure because you have to work, think and surpass yourself; that's what suits me well- Remy told AFP, between his two morning climbs.
-I do it for my health -- that's the first thing. I carry on for my muscles, because I've noticed quite often that if I stop for two or three weeks, it's much harder to start again. It's better to keep coming often.-Remy said the secret to his continued success was pacing himself.
-It's the rhythm that you have to take -- for breathing, for the movements- he explained.
-If I go beyond that, there's a price to pay afterwards. I can't tell you exactly what, but either the shoulders or the muscles. It's better to go calmly, without over-exertion -- and then it works.-

Climbing has always been major part of Remy's life. Brought up on tales of the mountains, he never stopped going off to discover the great outdoors and the Alps became his playground.

Remy worked on the Swiss railways and spent all his free time in the mountains, taking his two sons with him.
-He was a tough dad. With him it was do or die, whatever the conditions- said his oldest son Claude, 68.
But despite his ruggedness, he knew how to pass on his passion for the Alps. Claude and his 65-year-old brother Yves have also become well-known in the climbing world.
In August 2020, the top French climbing magazine Grimper devoted 40-odd pages to their exploits and the most impressive climbs they have accomplished together.
Nowadays, the roles are reversed and it's Claude guiding his father as he makes his second ascent of the morning at the Villeneuve climbing hall, one of the biggest in Switzerland.
This time, Remy is the first one up the route, making it all the harder.
He scales the first few metres with no trouble at all but in the upper sections, he struggles for several minutes to find the breakthrough that will take him to the top.
It is only with an agile jump that he finally unlocks the path to the summit, nimbly springing off his left foot and instantly landing on the same toehold with his right.
-It's good!- he says, out of breath, before making his way down.

Back at the bottom, sitting on a bench for a well-earned rest, he clenches his fists and says to his son: "I'm happy."

Claude explained: "He's a tough character. He's very resistant to hardship.
-Even if it's a very difficult section on the wall, as we saw towards the end, he searches and finally works out how to resolve it because he's motivated.-Claude said most people were stunned when they find out how old his father is, but the respect flows in both directions.
-He inspires great admiration in all age groups, even among the very young- but even so, -he'll look at how young people climb and try to copy their movements.-Though he mostly climbs indoors these days, Remy still does sorties into the mountains.
In 2017, at the age of 94, he conquered the Miroir de l'Argentine, a Swiss climbing classic with its 500 metres of limestone wall.
And he shows no sign of stopping.
-If I'm still enjoying it and feeling good, why not carry on?- he said.

In 2017, at the age of 94, Marcel Remy conquered the Miroir de l'Argentine, a Swiss climbing classic with its 500 metres of limestone wall

Marcel Remy has climbed for most of his 98 years

Maestro of Alpine climbing still scaling heights at 98

The five-star palace hotels are in full swing, the sound of music drifts across the beach and after a 'horrible' year blighted by coronavirus, Cannes is buzzing again for its international film festival. 

-We can't wait- admits Pierrick Cizeron, chief executive at the Majestic hotel that overlooks the Mediterranean and the festival convention centre.
In 2020, the festival that draws stars from across the world, had to be cancelled because of the pandemic.
With France under a partial lockdown in Spring, the 2021 edition has been delayed from the usual May date to July 6-17.
The festival pulled in 40,000 people a day pre-Covid -- only about half that number are expected this year -- and provided 20 percent of annual hotel turnover.
-It's more than just the excitement, we are in the middle of recruiting 250 people for the season- says Yann Gillet, director of the luxury Martinez hotel, which was full for the late May bank holiday weekend.
Last year's cancellation,he says, left staff "heart-broken" at a hotel that usually fills with celebrities for the festival.

The movie extravaganza, "is a real driving force and punctuates our year," Gillet says.

-Often clients come to see us and ask if it really was Brad Pitt's room.-On the seventh floor of the Martinez, which was totally renovated in 2019, the final touches are being made to a double penthouse suite booked by Chopard jewellers for the duration of the festival.
The Riviera resort had lived well off tourism and conventions, but the hotels and restaurants that provided most of the local jobs have been shut for long periods and had to rely on government handouts to try to keep mounting debt under control.
Despite high hopes for the festival, the hotels, which had been shut since September-October, are far from fully booked.
-We are only 10 percent full in June and 25 percent in July- says Cannes hotel union leader Christine Welter.
-It's an unexpected opportunity for people to come to the festival because in normal times it would be complicated- with hotel rooms at a premium and all booked out.
-And that's a good thing this year- she adds. -We have two-star hotels in the middle of town starting at 100 euros a night where normally there would be no rooms available during the festival.-In previous years the cheapest hotel rooms that start at 40 euros a night could fetch 260 euros during the festival.

The authorities are trying to vaccinate as many people as quickly as possible and health protocols are firmly in place, says Welter, as business builds up again.

On the Croisette, that runs along the seafront, a flower delivery man zigzags through the crowd carrying a display in each hand. Out at sea, a speedboat pulls a parachute covered with advertising. 
In the expensive shop windows, handbags, dresses and shoes await visitors with money to spend.
The festival "puts a rocket under our sales, we have magnificent clients," says 42-year-old Olivier Zambrana, who works at a Jimmy Choo boutique.
He would usually buy in double stocks for cashed-up festival-goers, but for now, he says, the shop will wait and see how things go.
At Giry's, caterer to Cannes for 50 years, business is slowly picking up.
In his office, with most of the staff still on furlough, Luc Guibout is recording his first orders in a year.
-There's no big bang but it feels like things are starting to kick off again- he smiles, after what he describes as a "horrible" year.
On the other side of town, in the La Bocca quarter, workers are busy finishing a new multiplex "Cineum" with 2,400 seats. The festival will inaugurate four of the 12 auditoriums.
The Cineum backs on to a new audiovisual studies campus that will take in its first 900 students in September, as city hall looks to capitalise on the global reputation of the festival.

In 2020, the festival that draws stars from across the world, had to be cancelled because of the pandemic

Cannes 2021: A glimpse of the Martinez hotel where most of the action takes place

Cannes 'can't wait' for film festival after 'horrible' year

Another classic piece of internet culture has been auctioned off for a six-figure sum, the latest viral sensation from the 2000s to be eagerly snapped up by digital collectors of "non fungible tokens" or NFTs.

The home video "Charlie Bit My Finger" sold for almost $761,000 on Sunday, the 14th anniversary of its debut.
In the 55-second YouTube clip from 2007, a British toddler named Harry holds his baby brother Charlie. But the adorable domestic scene takes a sudden turn when Harry puts his pointer finger into his brother's mouth, and to his surprise, Charlie clamps down, spawning the much-memed lines: "ouch, Charlie" and "Charlie, that really hurt". 
With more than 883 million views, it's one of YouTube's most popular videos, though it will soon be removed from the platform. The Davies-Carr family announced they would delete it following Sunday's auction, saying the highest bidder would become "the sole owner of this lovable piece of internet history", though of course it has been copied, shared and reposted numerous times across the web.
The auction drew offers from 11 accounts and sparked a bidding war between users "mememaster" and "3fmusic", the latter of which eventually won with a $760,999 offer. 
NFT collectibles, essentially digital assets with a certificate of authenticity created by the blockchain, have exploded in popularity over the past year. 
While the idea of buying something endlessly reproducible may bewilder some, a manic appetite for NFTs has taken hold in markets all over the world as buyers vie for bragging rights to a certified original. 
Early internet memorabilia, including memes, GIFs, photos and videos, have done particularly well. 
In March, Twitter boss Jack Dorsey sold his first tweet, from 2006, which reads "just setting up my twttr," for $2.9 million to a Malaysia-based businessman. 
An anonymous buyer snagged Nyan Cat, a 10-year-old animation of a flying, rainbow cat with a poptart body, for $590,000 the month before. 
And "Disaster Girl", a 16-year-old photo of a slyly smiling toddler with a house on fire in the background, was bought by a Dubai-based music studio for 180 Ethereum last month, the equivalent of almost $500,000 at the time.

It was published 14 years ago

In the 55-second YouTube clip from 2007, a British toddler named Harry holds his baby brother Charlie

'Charlie Bit My Finger' video fetches $760,000 at NFT auction

Twitter said on Thursday it has begun rolling out a new verification application system, allowing specific accounts to get the coveted checkmark.

The move will contribute to the company's plans to give more transparency, credibility, and clarity to verification on Twitter, the US-based tech giant said in a statement.
The accounts must be authentic, notable, and active to receive the blue badge.
-To qualify for verification, you must fit the criteria of one of the six categories; government, companies, brands and organizations, news organizations and journalists, entertainment, sports and gaming, activists, organizers, and other influential individuals.-It will later expand verification to include scientists, academics, and religious leaders.
The verified badge from accounts that no longer meet the updated criteria for verification, such as those that are inactive or incomplete, will be automatically removed, it said.
In order to be verified, an account is required to be complete, meaning it has a profile name, a profile image, and either a confirmed email address or phone number, besides being active within the last six months and have a record of adherence to the Twitter Rules.
-Over the next few weeks, everyone on Twitter will start to see the new verification application directly in the Account Settings tab- the press release said.
The system was officially paused in 2017.

All users globally can apply for blue badge from Account Setting tab

he accounts must be authentic, notable, and active to receive the blue badge

Twitter rolls out new account verification application process

Google announced plans Thursday for its first-ever physical retail store, set to open in New York this year, as the tech giant moves increasingly into gadgetry in competition with Apple.

The retail outlet will open this summer in the Chelsea neighborhood, where Google has a large regional office with many of its 11,000 New York employees.
-At the Google Store, customers will be able to browse and buy an extensive selection of products made by Google, ranging from Pixel phones to Nest products, Fitbit devices to Pixelbooks and more- said Google vice president Jason Rosenthal.
-Or they can shop online at GoogleStore.com and pick up their orders in store. Throughout the store, visitors will be able to experience how our products and services work together in a variety of immersive ways, which we're excited to share more about when the doors open.-The move comes with the internet-search leader increasingly taking on Apple with hardware products ranging from smartphones to thermostats, and follows its acquisition of wearables maker Fitbit.
-The new Google Store is an important next step in our hardware journey of providing the most helpful experience of Google, wherever and whenever people need it- Rosenthal said in a blog post.
While Apple has integrated its physical stores into its marketing strategy, Microsoft last year announced it was permanently closing its retail locations except for a handful that would be used as "experience centers."

The retail outlet will open this summer in the Chelsea neighborhood

At the Google Store, customers will be able to browse and buy an extensive selection of products made by Google, ranging from Pixel phones to Nest products, Fitbit devices to Pixelbooks and more

Google's first physical store set to open in New York

The BBC is to publish the findings of an internal investigation on Thursday into how the journalist Martin Bashir secured an explosive 1995 interview with princess Diana.

Questions have long been asked about how Bashir persuaded Diana to talk, with the princess' own brother claiming he used faked documents and bank statements.
The interview, on the BBC's flagship "Panorama" programme in November 1995, was watched by a record 22.8 million people and lifted the lid on Diana's troubled marriage to Prince Charles.
She famously said "there were three people" in her marriage -- her, Charles and his long-time mistress and now wife, Camilla Parker-Bowles, and also admitted adultery.
Bashir, 58, was little-known at the time of the interview but went on to have a high-profile career on US television networks, interviewing big-name stars, including the singer Michael Jackson, before returning to work for the corporation as religion editor.
He stepped down last week, citing ill health, hours before the report was submitted to BBC director-general Tim Davie. A scheduled BBC programme into the controversy was also delayed.
British media said Thursday the six-month probe by a retired senior judge had concluded Bashir used underhand methods to convince Diana to talk, in breach of editorial guidelines.
The Daily Telegraph suggested the report's findings could be comparable to phone-hacking revelations at the News of the World tabloid, which forced its closure.
A previous BBC inquiry had cleared Bashir of wrong-doing.
Diana and Charles formally divorced in 1996. She died aged 36 in a high-speed car crash in Paris the following year. Charles married Camilla in 2005.

Questions have long been asked about how Bashir persuaded Diana to talk, with the princess' own brother claiming he used faked documents and bank statements

She famously said "there were three people" in her marriage -- her, Charles and his long-time mistress and now wife, Camilla Parker-Bowles, and also admitted adultery

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Entertainment

Walt Disney preparing to create its own metaverse

How can you become a space tourist?

Princes William, Harry unveil new Diana statue at Kensington Palace

Britney Spears' father to stay on as guardian, US court rules

Woman’s claim of giving birth to 10 babies false

Elton John extends farewell tour in US, Europe

Live audience 'baby steps' back to normality for Milan fashion

Rover leaves 'China's imprint' on Mars

Sale of Mona Lisa replica set to raise up to 300,000 euros

Meghan and Harry name new baby daughter after Queen and Diana

Maestro of Alpine climbing still scaling heights at 98

Cannes 'can't wait' for film festival after 'horrible' year

'Charlie Bit My Finger' video fetches $760,000 at NFT auction

Twitter rolls out new account verification application process

Google's first physical store set to open in New York

BBC to publish report into Diana interview