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  • What’s so special about Disney Plus?

    What’s so special about Disney Plus?

    Two weeks after Apple rolled out its own streaming service Apple TV+, Disney launched its own streaming service Disney Plus.

    While Netflix, Amazon Prime and Apple Plus are spending money on original content featuring big celebs, Disney Plus offers you something different: ALL Disney content. From Disney animated classics to Marvel, Pixar, Star Wars and even 20th Century Fox content, everything under the Disney banner and more is included in Disney Plus.

    Disney Plus released a 3-hour trailer last month to showcase all its programs.

    By comparison, Apple had a relatively subdued launch earlier this month. At $6.99 per month, Disney Plus debuted with 10 original movies, specials and series. It is also expected to release more than 45 original programmes within a year of its launch. 

    A recent study said that 40 percent of consumers would sign up for Disney Plus just because the content reminded them of their childhood.

    In fact, on the first day of its launch, Disney Plus was hit by technical issues. There were many reports on social media platforms about problems accessing the service. Many users shared screenshots of error messages.

    Disney Plus launched in the US, Canada and the Netherlands on Tuesday. Disney Plus will arrive in Australia and New Zealand on November 19.

    Globally, Disney plans a progressive rollout worldwide over the next two years. The company provided a generalised timeline for when it will expand the service to the world’s major regions.

    Disney Plus is slated to roll out in:

    • Eastern Europe over the course of a year starting as early as October 2020.
    • Latin America over the course of three months starting as early as October 2020.
    • Asia Pacific over the course of two years starting anytime.

    Pakistan comes in the Asia Pacific region which means we’ll have to wait a little longer than others.

  • Karachi among ‘worst cities for drivers’

    Karachi among ‘worst cities for drivers’

    Not that we didn’t know that already, but a new report has confirmed that Karachi is one of the worst cities to drive in.

    According to a French-based survey, which ranked 100 global cities to determine which were the best, and worst, destinations for drivers, Karachi was at number five. Mumbai topped the list while Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia came second and Kolkata, India third.

    On the other hand, Calgary, Canada was the best city in the world for driving followed by Dubai (2) and Ottawa (3).

    Read more: Karachi declared world’s 57th safest city

    Meanwhile, the same study ranked Karachi number three on the list of cities with the most incidents of road rage. Road rage is defined as aggressive or angry behaviour exhibited by a driver of a road vehicle. Ulaanbaatar, the capital of Mongolia topped the list while Moscow, Russia came second.

    Read more: Karachi second in chars consumption worldwide

    The study took three factors into consideration – infrastructure, safety and costs – when drawing up comparisons and deciding which city made a good location to drive.

    To determine a city’s infrastructure, a number of factors were examined, such as the number of cars per capita, traffic congestion, road and public transport quality, among others. Air quality levels were also investigated in order to determine the city’s commitment to providing fresh air and good visibility for its drivers and citizens alike.

    The costs associated with driving in each city were also evaluated, including not only the price of combustibles and annual road tax paid in each location but also the purchase parity of each country to determine how affordable it was to drive in that particular city.

  • WhatsApp introduces new privacy controls for users

    WhatsApp introduces new privacy controls for users

    WhatsApp has introduced a new privacy setting and invite system that will help users to decide who can add them to groups, Dawn reported.

    According to the details, the tech giant Facebook in a statement said, “WhatsApp groups continue to connect family, friends, coworkers, classmates and more. As people turn to groups for important conversations, users have asked for more control over their experience. Today, we’re introducing a new privacy setting and invite system to help you decide who can add you to groups”.

    With the new control features, users will have more control over the group messages they receive. The press release also said that these new privacy settings will begin rolling out to some users starting today and will be available worldwide in the coming days to those using the latest version of WhatsApp”.

    How to enable new settings:

    To enable them,

    • Go to settings in the app.
    • Tap account > privacy > groups
    • Select one of three options: ‘everyone’, ‘my contacts’, or ‘my contacts except’.

    “The users will have three days to accept the invite before it expires,” the statement said.

    Media Matters for Democracy Director Sadaf Khan welcomed the decision, saying: “Developing new ways to increase consumers’ control is a positive step.”

    She also expressed the hope that WhatsApp will continue to empower consumers with tools that help them define their own information experience in “an active and informed manner”.

  • Shaikh Rasheed wanted Nawaz’s name off the no fly list

    Even though Nawaz Sharif has rejected the conditional leave offer made by the government, prior to the offer and during a federal cabinet meeting on Tuesday, many ministers were against letting Nawaz go.

    RELATED: Govt allows Nawaz to travel abroad, for four weeks only

    The meeting was headed by Prime Minister Khan and lasted for four hours. According to GEO News, several ministers opposed letting Nawaz leave the country. They included Fawad Chaudhry and Faisal Vawda, who have publicly spoken against the move as well. They were joined by Federal Minister for Kashmir Affairs Ali Amin Gandapur and Human Rights Minister Shireen Mazari.

    But some ministers said that Nawaz’s name should be pulled off the no fly list, including Railways Minister Shaikh Rasheed.

    In an interview to ARY News Shaikh Rasheed said that Nawaz should take the deal and leave the country and if he doesn’t, he is just playing politics.

    Shaikh Rasheed’s comments on ARY News

  • Govt allows Nawaz to travel abroad, for four weeks only

    Govt allows Nawaz to travel abroad, for four weeks only

    Federal Minister for Law and Justice Farogh Naseem announced that former prime minister Nawaz Sharif will be allowed to travel abroad for medical treatment. He added that Sharif can only go abroad for four weeks.

    “This permission will be subject to Nawaz or Shehbaz Sharif submitting an indemnity bond to the tune of roughly Rs7-7.5 billion to the satisfaction of additional secretary to the Ministry of Interior.”

    This will be one-time permission only.

    The law minister announced this on Wednesday at a press conference after a meeting of the federal cabinet’s sub-committee. The meeting has decided to remove Nawaz Sharif’s name from the Exit Control List (ECL) on the basis of his critical medical condition.

    Farogh Naseem and Shahzad Akbar making the announcement

    Special Assistant to Prime Minister on Accountability Shahzad Akbar said that it was the federal government’s responsibility to ensure a guarantee from Nawaz Sharif.

    “The bond is only over surety, not any political gain,” Akbar said the Ministry of Interior will issue the letter of permission. He reminded everyone that Mian Nawaz Sharif had been sentenced in a corruption case while an investigation is still underway in other cases.

    Nawaz had refused this conditional permission to travel abroad on Tuesday.

  • Maulana Dharna is over

    Maulana Dharna is over

    Maulana Fazalur Rehman has announced that he is ending the Azadi March dharna and is going ahead with Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (JUI-F)’s Plan B.

    Plan B consists of blocking highways across Pakistan, in every province and major cities.

    After the announcement of ending the sit-in, Azadi March participants have dismantled their tents and have started leaving the H-9 venue in Islamabad.

    Memories the Azadi Marchers are leaving behind

    Plan B has already begun as dharna protests have begun on the Quetta-Chaman highway. They are also planning to block highways in Lower Dir and the Indus Highway. In Punjab, they will be blocking G.T. Road. The motorway to Sukkur and the road linking Ghotki to Punjab will also be closed.

    The blocking of roads will officially start on Thursday at 2PM. JUI-F representatives say that they will not carry sticks and ambulances will be allowed to pass through.

  • Edhi Foundation receives $1mn award for Service to Humanity

    Edhi Foundation receives $1mn award for Service to Humanity

    The Kingdom of Bahrain on Tuesday conferred the Isa Award for Service to Humanity to the Edhi Foundation for their tireless efforts towards humanity. The award includes a US$1 million reward, a medal made of pure gold and a certificate of appreciation.

    Faisal Edhi received the award on behalf of the foundation.

    According to reports, the Edhi Foundation received the award at a grand royal ceremony attended by King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa of Bahrain in Manama, the capital.

    An international jury recommended the foundation which was selected after shortlisting several qualifiers.

    A press release issued by the awarding committee said that the honour, which is given every two years, was established in 2008 by a Royal Decree in memory of Emir Sheikh Isa bin Salman Al Khalifa after whom the award is named. It recognises individuals who have dedicated their lives to humanitarian work.

    The Edhi Foundation, founded by the late Abdul Sattar Edhi, is the largest Pakistani charity foundation, known worldwide for its humanitarian work. It serves all human beings, regardless of race, religion or nationality. Edhi runs several shelter houses, old homes, an ambulance network, orphanages, soup kitchens, morgues along with multiple other welfare services.

    Until his death on July 8, 2016, Edhi dedicated his life and that of all his family members to the service of people. The award honours him, and the work that is still being done by the foundation for the betterment of the people across Pakistan.

  • Right to appeal: Army Act to be amended for relief to Indian spy

    Right to appeal: Army Act to be amended for relief to Indian spy

    The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Isnaf (PTI) government has decided to amend the Army Act so as to allow Indian spy Kulbhushan Jadhav to appeal against his conviction on charges of espionage before a civilian court, Dunya News reported.

    Jadhav of India’s Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) was arrested from Balochistan three years ago. In 2017, he was convicted by a military court in Pakistan and sentenced to death on charges of espionage and terrorism.

    The punishment was awarded by the Field General Court Martial (FGCM), a military court consisting of Pakistan Army officers.

    While Jadhav had confessed to working for the covert agency to destabilise Pakistan, India had rejected the charges and maintained that he was a former Indian Navy officer “kidnapped by Pakistani forces”.

    The Indian spy’s death sentence had later been challenged in the International Court of Justice (ICJ).

    After a long battle, the court, in its verdict, had rejected a number of Indian demands, including the annulment of the military court’s decision, Jadhav’s release and safe passage to India.

    It had, however, directed Pakistan to provide appropriate remedies to the spy, such as providing him effective review and reconsideration of his conviction and sentences according to its own justice system.

    The Army Act forbids any individuals or groups being tried in a military court from filing an appeal and seeking justice from a civilian court, but a special amendment is now reportedly being made for Jadhav.

  • ‘PTI govt recovers Rs10.8 bn looted in Hazara motorway construction,’ claims Murad Saeed

    Minister for Communication and Postal Services, Murad Saeed has claimed that the government has recovered embezzlement worth Rs10.8 billion in the Hazara motorway project done by Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N).

    Addressing the National Assembly (NA) session on Monday the minister said that PML-N made changes in the design of the motorway and added a suspicious bridge in the project that caused the delay and escalated the cost as well.

    Murad said that he requested the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) to look into the matter and launched an inquiry, which led to recoveries of Rs10.8 billion.

    The minister informed the parliament that inordinate changes were also made in Hakala-Dera Ismail Khan, Sukkur-Multan, and Lahore Abdul Hakeem motorway sections.

    He later demanded an apology from those who caused substantial damages to the national exchequer and announced that the design changes have been completed, and the motorway will be open for the public on November 15.

    Watch Video:

  • Fawad lashes out at Sanjay Dutt’s ‘Panipat’ for ‘trying to rewrite history under RSS influence’

    Fawad lashes out at Sanjay Dutt’s ‘Panipat’ for ‘trying to rewrite history under RSS influence’

    Minister for Science and Technology, Fawad Chaudhry doesn’t mince words when it comes to expressing his thoughts.

    Recently, while responding to a tweet about the upcoming Bollywood historical saga Panipat, Fawad wrote on Twitter, “When idiots try to rewrite history under RSS influence this is minimum one should expect, agay agay dekheiye hota hai kiya…”

    Panipat which features Sanjay Dutt, Arjun Kapoor and Kriti Sanon in the lead is directed by ace filmmaker Ashutosh Gowariker (Lagaan, Swades, Jodha Akbar). The film reportedly depicts the story behind the Third Battle of Panipat, which was fought between the Maratha Empire and the King of Afghanistan, Ahmad Shah Abdali in 1761.

    While Arjun will be playing Maratha warrior Sadashiv Rao Bhau, Dutt will essay the role of the Afghan ruler Abdali.

    Read more: ‘Another anti-Pakistan project’: Mehwish Hayat lashes out as SRK’s ‘Bard of Blood’ stirs controversy

    The film has not only irked Pakistanis for misrepresentation of Muslim rulers but according to The Print, the Embassy of Afghanistan has also expressed concerns to New Delhi and sought a meeting with the Information and Broadcasting Minister Prakash Javadekar to discuss the film.

    The Afghans are critical of the way the former Afghan emperor Ahmad Shah Abdali has been portrayed in the period drama. Abdali is a revered figure in Afghanistan and is regarded as the founder of the modern state of Afghanistan.

    The Afghanistan Embassy in New Delhi also wrote to the Ministry of External Affairs regarding the matter, while the ex-Afghan ambassador to India tweeted directly to Dutt over the portrayal.

    Panipat is scheduled to hit the screens on December 6. The demolition of the Babri Masjid in the city of Ayodhya, in Uttar Pradesh, took place on the same date in 1992.

    Previously Ranveer Singh’s portrayal of Alauddin Khilji in last year’s Padmaavat left many historians aghast and irked the Muslims who felt that the great emperor was turned into a vile villain.

    Read more: Arts vs Politics: A contentious debate engulfing India

    Watch trailer here: