Author: damazah@gmail.com

Disney and TikTok have agreed a deal which will allow creators to use clips from Disney films, including its subsidiaries, in their videos.It means clips from hit franchises like Star Wars, Toy Story and the Marvel Cinematic Universe will soon start popping up in videos – which will also be shared on Disney’s short-form video platform, Verts.The scheme will be launched in the US before being rolled out to other countries.Neither company shared financial details of the agreement, although it follows the collapse of a $1bn (£745m) deal between Disney and OpenAI which would have let people use its characters…

The taxi app company Uber and the autonomous technology developer Wayve have been granted the first minicab licences in London, allowing them to offer self-driving taxi rides to paying customers – but with a human safety driver in place, for now.The companies said they would start trips in the UK “later this summer” before the full public launch.The San Francisco-headquartered Uber and London-based Wayve are racing against the Google-owned Waymo and its Chinese equivalent Baidu’s Apollo Go to launch self-driving taxi services in London. Their progress is being watched closely because the British capital will be one of the first…

Popular Yoruba actress Temitope Osoba has died. She was 40. Her colleagues, Oladipupo Okanlawon and Foluke Daramola-Salako, announced her death in separate Instagram posts on Wednesday, revealing that she died on Tuesday. Although they did not disclose the cause of her death, Ms Osoba battled breast cancer and underwent several surgeries as part of her treatment. Her death came after her prolonged fight with the illness. Daramola-Salako wrote, “Tope is gone, my baby is gone. Ha, iku doro.” Humble Okanlawon said Ms Osoba was more than a colleague; he described her as a kind, humble and caring person whose presence…

Former Real Madrid and Barcelona star Luis Figo has called for “deceitful” Gianni Infantino to quit as pressure mounts on the under-fire FIFA president. Infantino is fighting to save his job after a fierce backlash against his plan to sell off stakes in the World Cup. The 56-year-old wanted to sell a 20 per cent stake in the World Cup to private equity investors through his FIFA Forward Enterprise. The plan sparked a cascade of criticism for Infantino and has been rejected by three continental confederations, forcing the FIFA chief to ditch his divisive idea. In a bid to win…

In the summer of 2021, a year after Cooper Hoffman finished filming Licorice Pizza — the movie that would make him a movie star practically overnight — he was on the set of Steven Spielberg’s The Fabelmans, working one of the lowest jobs on the crew’s hierarchy. His official title was COVID production assistant, which meant that he sat at a folding table, clipboard in hand, checking in the cast and crew as they arrived for their daily nasal swabs. Hoffman had been dispatched to the production by Licorice Pizza director Paul Thomas Anderson, who knew about the attention, praise…

Suspected armed herders have killed four people and injured several others in Abaashwa, a hamlet in Mbaasar, Nzorov Council Ward of Guma Local Government Area of Benue State. The attack occurred at about 11 p.m. on Monday and lasted for about an hour, according to Abraham Kyambe, a resident who shared details of the incident with journalists. Mr Kyambe said the attackers killed four residents, identified as Emberga Akombu, Terver Pool, Emberga Tersoo and Pool Tersoo. He added that James Agir, Bunde Pool, Akombu Jeremiah and another resident sustained injuries and were receiving treatment at the General Hospital in Gbajimba.…

Chuck Edwards announced he would not run for re-election after the US House of Representatives ethics committee determined the US congressman “fostered a hostile work environment and engaged in sexual harassment” by giving gifts and lavishing attention on two young female staffers.Edwards, a Republican for North Carolina, said he would complete his current term, which is due to end in January.In a statement posted on social media early on Wednesday morning, Edwards said: “After much prayer and reflection, I’ve decided to withdraw from my re-election campaign. I will complete my current term. Serving sestern North Carolina has been the honor…

Zenith Bank Plc has revealed that it is investigating an incident involving unauthorised access to customers’ data, noting that the breach does not involve financial information and has not compromised its banking services or digital channels. In an email sent to customers on Wednesday, the bank stated that the incident was part of a broader global cyberattack affecting multiple international organisations across various sectors. The lender stated that it immediately activated its incident response protocols and intensified its cybersecurity and remediation efforts upon discovering the incident. “This incident is part of a broader, global cyber-attack targeting multiple international organisations across…

Woman hand holding tv remote.gettyAfter years of enthusiastic coverage, the British broadcast media are starting to be more skeptical about the benefits of AI.An analysis of more than 215,000 U.K. television and radio broadcasts by PR firm Be Broadcast concluded that AI has entered its “consequence phase”, with a shift in focus away from AI product launches towards accountability, jobs, public services and real-world impact.Stories are increasingly emerging where AI affects existing public concerns, including child safety, youth unemployment, cyber crime, copyright, energy demand and defense. Meanwhile, planning disputes around data centers are getting more coverage, along with chips, electricity,…

Disney is introducing fan-created TikTok content to its Disney Plus app in its latest attempt to break into short-form creator videos. The Walt Disney Company announced today that it’s partnering with TikTok to bring “an expansive collection of thoughtfully curated Disney-centric fan-created content” to the Verts video feed it launched on Disney Plus earlier this year, providing creators with access to assets from “hundreds” of movies and TV shows.The partnership will be piloted in the US “in the coming months,” according to Disney, with plans to launch in other markets later. Videos from TikTok creators who opt-in to the program…