Comedy Central deleted a message on Thursday from its Twitter feed of the late-night satirical show The Colbert Report showing a still from Wednesday night's show where Stephen Colbert joked about starting a "Ching-Chong Ding-Dong Foundation for Sensitivity to Orientals or Whatever". The joke was part of a skit in which the host Stephen Colbert talked about the Washington Redskins's owner buying things for Native Americans upset with the team's name. The hashtag #CancelColbert then appeared on Twitter, igniting a debate over what is funny and what is offensive. On his personal Twitter feed, Colbert said of #CancelColbert: "I share your rage." – AP
NY college to offer Miley Cyrus class
Skidmore College, a private liberal arts college in upstate New York, is offering a summer course on Miley Cyrus. Visiting assistant professor Carolyn Chernoff calls the course The Sociology of Miley Cyrus: Race, Class, Gender and Media and says she'll focus on the 21-year-old performer and all her incarnations as a way to study such topics as gender, race, class, fame and power. She says she got the idea after teaching a course on youth culture that featured a video of Cyrus twerking at the 2013 MTV Video Music Awards. – AP
Frozen holds throne on top of Billboard
The soundtrack to Disney's Frozen shows no signs of slowing down four months after its release, as sales for the album hit a high note and held the top spot on this week's Billboard 200 album chart. Frozen, which features the Oscar-winning song Let It Go, sold 202,000 copies last week, its biggest sales week since its November 25 release. Six new releases entered the top 10, led by the rapper YG's My Krazy Life at No 2. The alt-rockers Foster the People debuted their latest record Supermodel at No 3, while the electronic music DJ Skrillex came in at No 4 with Recess. – Reuters
Sinha to get special IIFA honour
The veteran actor Shatrughan Sinha will be honoured for his outstanding contribution to Indian cinema at the 15th edition of the International Indian Film Academy (IIFA) awards ceremony to be held in Florida from April 23 to 26. The filmmaker Ramesh Sippy made the announcement on Thursday. The IIFA, Indian cinema's largest annual extravaganza, is usually held abroad, and makes its US debut this year in Tampa Bay. Sinha began his career in Bollwood in 1970 and is known for films such as Kalicharan (1976), Kaala Patthar (1979), Dostana (1980) and Shaan (1980). – IANS
The Grandmaster wins big at this year’s Asian Film Awards
The Chinese martial arts drama The Grandmaster won Best Picture, Best Director for Wong Kar-Wai, Best Actress for Zhang Ziyi and four other prizes at the Asian Film Awards, held on Thursday in Macau. The Best Actor prize went to Irrfan Khan for the Indian film The Lunchbox, which screened at the Dubai International Film Festival. The Chinese actor Huang Bo won Best Supporting Actor for No Man's Land, while the Malaysian actress Yeo Yann Yann won Best Supporting Actress for Ilo Ilo, which also screened at DIFF. The Asian Film Awards were organised this year by a new regional governing body that includes the awards' previous organiser, the Hong Kong International Film Festival Society, and representatives from the Tokyo and Busan film festivals. – AP
Stones Paris gig sells out in 51 mins
Rolling Stones fans snapped up 75,000 tickets for a Paris concert in June in less than an hour on Friday. The tickets for the belatedly added Paris leg of the 14 on Fire tour on June 13 sold out in 51 minutes. The tour kicked off in Abu Dhabi on February 21 but was suspended after the suspected suicide of Mick Jagger's girlfriend, the fashion designer L'Wren Scott, on March 17. The Paris gig was announced last Sunday after the Stones postponed their dates Down Under following Scott's death. The tour will resume on June 7 in the Netherlands. In Paris, the iconic rock band will play at the Stade de France, a national stadium built for the 1998 World Cup. – AFP
Tiesto cancels Venezuela show
The Dutch DJ Tiesto, one of the world's most popular purveyors of dance music, says he is cancelling a show in Caracas because "it's no time to party". The show had been scheduled for April 4. Tiesto said he would reschedule as soon as possible because he's always played great shows in Venezuela. Tiesto is the world's highest-paid DJ, according to Forbes, earning about US$250,000 (Dh918,000) for a three-hour set. Venezuela has been rocked by anti-government protests for nearly three months. Earlier this week, the Italian singer Jovanotti announced that he was cancelling an April show because of safety concerns. – AP
artslife@thenational.ae
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Results:
First Test: New Zealand 30 British & Irish Lions 15
Second Test: New Zealand 21 British & Irish Lions 24
Third Test: New Zealand 15 British & Irish Lions 15
Rooney's club record
At Everton Appearances: 77; Goals: 17
At Manchester United Appearances: 559; Goals: 253
Email sent to Uber team from chief executive Dara Khosrowshahi
From: Dara
To: Team@
Date: March 25, 2019 at 11:45pm PT
Subj: Accelerating in the Middle East
Five years ago, Uber launched in the Middle East. It was the start of an incredible journey, with millions of riders and drivers finding new ways to move and work in a dynamic region that’s become so important to Uber. Now Pakistan is one of our fastest-growing markets in the world, women are driving with Uber across Saudi Arabia, and we chose Cairo to launch our first Uber Bus product late last year.
Today we are taking the next step in this journey—well, it’s more like a leap, and a big one: in a few minutes, we’ll announce that we’ve agreed to acquire Careem. Importantly, we intend to operate Careem independently, under the leadership of co-founder and current CEO Mudassir Sheikha. I’ve gotten to know both co-founders, Mudassir and Magnus Olsson, and what they have built is truly extraordinary. They are first-class entrepreneurs who share our platform vision and, like us, have launched a wide range of products—from digital payments to food delivery—to serve consumers.
I expect many of you will ask how we arrived at this structure, meaning allowing Careem to maintain an independent brand and operate separately. After careful consideration, we decided that this framework has the advantage of letting us build new products and try new ideas across not one, but two, strong brands, with strong operators within each. Over time, by integrating parts of our networks, we can operate more efficiently, achieve even lower wait times, expand new products like high-capacity vehicles and payments, and quicken the already remarkable pace of innovation in the region.
This acquisition is subject to regulatory approval in various countries, which we don’t expect before Q1 2020. Until then, nothing changes. And since both companies will continue to largely operate separately after the acquisition, very little will change in either teams’ day-to-day operations post-close. Today’s news is a testament to the incredible business our team has worked so hard to build.
It’s a great day for the Middle East, for the region’s thriving tech sector, for Careem, and for Uber.
Uber on,
Dara
Our legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants
Tightening the screw on rogue recruiters
The UAE overhauled the procedure to recruit housemaids and domestic workers with a law in 2017 to protect low-income labour from being exploited.
Only recruitment companies authorised by the government are permitted as part of Tadbeer, a network of labour ministry-regulated centres.
A contract must be drawn up for domestic workers, the wages and job offer clearly stating the nature of work.
The contract stating the wages, work entailed and accommodation must be sent to the employee in their home country before they depart for the UAE.
The contract will be signed by the employer and employee when the domestic worker arrives in the UAE.
Only recruitment agencies registered with the ministry can undertake recruitment and employment applications for domestic workers.
Penalties for illegal recruitment in the UAE include fines of up to Dh100,000 and imprisonment
But agents not authorised by the government sidestep the law by illegally getting women into the country on visit visas.
Specs
Engine: 51.5kW electric motor
Range: 400km
Power: 134bhp
Torque: 175Nm
Price: From Dh98,800
Available: Now
The Sand Castle
Director: Matty Brown
Stars: Nadine Labaki, Ziad Bakri, Zain Al Rafeea, Riman Al Rafeea
Rating: 2.5/5
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Grubtech
Founders: Mohamed Al Fayed and Mohammed Hammedi
Launched: October 2019
Employees: 50
Financing stage: Seed round (raised $2 million)
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cyl
Power: 153hp at 6,000rpm
Torque: 200Nm at 4,000rpm
Transmission: 6-speed auto
Price: Dh99,000
On sale: now
How to turn your property into a holiday home
- Ensure decoration and styling – and portal photography – quality is high to achieve maximum rates.
- Research equivalent Airbnb homes in your location to ensure competitiveness.
- Post on all relevant platforms to reach the widest audience; whether you let personally or via an agency know your potential guest profile – aiming for the wrong demographic may leave your property empty.
- Factor in costs when working out if holiday letting is beneficial. The annual DCTM fee runs from Dh370 for a one-bedroom flat to Dh1,200. Tourism tax is Dh10-15 per bedroom, per night.
- Check your management company has a physical office, a valid DTCM licence and is licencing your property and paying tourism taxes. For transparency, regularly view your booking calendar.
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Manikarnika: The Queen of Jhansi
Director: Kangana Ranaut, Krish Jagarlamudi
Producer: Zee Studios, Kamal Jain
Cast: Kangana Ranaut, Ankita Lokhande, Danny Denzongpa, Atul Kulkarni
Rating: 2.5/5
Our family matters legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
More from Neighbourhood Watch:
The more serious side of specialty coffee
While the taste of beans and freshness of roast is paramount to the specialty coffee scene, so is sustainability and workers’ rights.
The bulk of genuine specialty coffee companies aim to improve on these elements in every stage of production via direct relationships with farmers. For instance, Mokha 1450 on Al Wasl Road strives to work predominantly with women-owned and -operated coffee organisations, including female farmers in the Sabree mountains of Yemen.
Because, as the boutique’s owner, Garfield Kerr, points out: “women represent over 90 per cent of the coffee value chain, but are woefully underrepresented in less than 10 per cent of ownership and management throughout the global coffee industry.”
One of the UAE’s largest suppliers of green (meaning not-yet-roasted) beans, Raw Coffee, is a founding member of the Partnership of Gender Equity, which aims to empower female coffee farmers and harvesters.
Also, globally, many companies have found the perfect way to recycle old coffee grounds: they create the perfect fertile soil in which to grow mushrooms.
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Take Me Apart
Kelela
(Warp)
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
Hotel Data Cloud profile
Date started: June 2016
Founders: Gregor Amon and Kevin Czok
Based: Dubai
Sector: Travel Tech
Size: 10 employees
Funding: $350,000 (Dh1.3 million)
Investors: five angel investors (undisclosed except for Amar Shubar)
SPECS
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