Netflix takes gamble with Epix film cull

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Thousands of movies will be removed from Netflix after the streaming service decided not to renew a deal with distributor Epix.

Removed titles will include the Hunger Games and Transformers movies.

Netflix, which has more than 60 million subscribers worldwide, said it wanted to focus on exclusive content.

Rival service Hulu will take on the Epix catalogue. "Our subscribers have been asking us for more, and more recent, big movies," Hulu said.

"We listened. Through this new deal with Epix, we are proud to now be able to offer a huge selection of the biggest blockbusters and premium films."

Netflix's deal with Epix - which was worth a reported $1bn - runs up until the end of September 2015, at which point the films will disappear from the service.

Explaining the move to subscribers, Netflix's chief content officer Ted Sarandos wrote: "While many of these movies are popular, they are also widely available on cable and other subscription platforms at the same time as they are on Netflix and subject to the same drawn out licensing periods."

He then went on to list a variety of exclusive shows coming up on the service, including new work from Ricky Gervais, Idris Elba and Adam Sandler.

He also praised an upcoming Netflix-made documentary about Rolling Stones guitarist Keith Richards.

'Data decision'

As competition between video on demand (VOD) services intensifies, Netflix's decision may appear to be an unlikely move.

However, Forrester analyst Jim Nail said he believed the company was making a calculated gamble.

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Migrant crisis: Hundreds arrive at Austria station

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Hundreds of migrants have arrived by rail in the Austrian capital Vienna after being held for several hours at the Hungarian border.

Many of them immediately boarded trains bound for Germany.

Austria has also introduced extra checks on road vehicles entering from Hungary after 71 dead people were found in a lorry on Thursday.

The number of migrants entering Europe has reached record levels, with 107,500 arriving in July alone.

Most of those found dead on Thursday, on the A4 at Parndorf, were thought to be Syrians fleeing the country's civil war.

Five people have been detained in connection with the deaths.

Thousands of people rallied in Austria on Monday demanding better rights for migrants.

As well as the bodies in the lorry in Austria, hundreds more people drowned in the Mediterranean last week while trying to reach Europe from Libya.

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Palmyra's Temple of Bel 'destroyed'

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A satellite image confirms that a temple in the ancient Syrian city of Palmyra has been destroyed, the United Nations says.

There had been earlier reports of an explosion at the Temple of Bel in Palmyra, which is held by militants from Islamic State (IS).

Syria's antiquities chief had earlier said the basic structure of the 2,000-year-old site was intact.

But UN satellite analysts Unosat say the imageshows almost nothing remains.

"Unfortunately, the images we acquired do show that the main building of the temple has been destroyed," Einar Bjorgo, Unosat's manager, told the BBC early on Tuesday.

He added that a set of columns nearby had also been destroyed.

On Monday, Maamoun Abdulkarim, the head of the Syrian Department of Antiquities and Museums, had said the Temple of Bel suffered a large explosion, but that he believed most of the site had remained intact.

Witnesses had struggled, however, to get close to the site to confirm the extent of the damage.

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A life shattered - and the most inspiring love story you'll ever read: How a rugby player who was paralysed in a match fought back to ski, complete a marathon... and win the woman of his dreams

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When Matthew King was paralysed from the neck down playing rugby (top right) in his teens, the list of things he could not do seemed endless and insurmountable. He could not move, breathe without a ventilator or go anywhere unattended by his support workers. He had to be washed, dressed, fed and trussed up in a corset each morning to stop his back from crumpling. For three months he could not even speak. It seemed like things would never change but then Matt (bottom right), 28, confounded everyone's expectations - even his own - and forged a new life rich in incident, achievement and purpose. Now, he speaks to the Daily Mail alongside his fiancée Ilona-Roza Kubica (pictured together left).

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Now THAT'S girl power: Taylor Swift takes her A-list Girl Squad to the MTV VMAs as Selena, Cara and Gigi join her on red carpet

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There was no shortage of glamour on the MTV Video Music Awards red carpet on Sunday. And Taylor Swift brought it in spades when she arrived with her famous girl squad, posing with pals including S (L-R) Gigi Hadid, Martha Hunt, Hailee Steinfeld, Cara Delevingne, Selena Gomez, Serayah, Mariska Hargitay, Lily Aldridge and Karlie Kloss.
The 25-year-old, who is leading the nominations for the evening, certainly went for a striking look in a gold, silver and bronze houndstooth crop top and matching trousers, which were both covered in sequins.

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'Two seconds later and it would have been me': Driver of last vehicle to avoid Shoreham crash fireball talks of his ordeal and says 'it's a miracle I survived' Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3211017/Two-seconds-later-Driver-vehicle-avoid-Shoreham-crash-fireball-talks-ordeal-says-s-miracle-survived.html#ixzz3jut5tX4p Follow us: @MailOnline on Twitter | DailyMail on Facebook

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71-year-old leapt to safety from his BMW X3 after windows were blown out

Silver car continued to roll through fireball and emerged from the flames 

He was in front of limousine in which Maurice Abrahams, 76, was killed

Traumatised man said: 'I was the last one to make it out of the inferno alive'

Were you caught up in the Shoreham air crash? Call 02036151866 or email news@mailonline.co.uk

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3211017/Two-seconds-later-Driver-vehicle-avoid-Shoreham-crash-fireball-talks-ordeal-says-s-miracle-survived.html#ixzz3jutK4d5k
Follow us: @MailOnline on Twitter | DailyMail on Facebook

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EXCLUSIVE: Extraordinary moment 'Russian serial killer known as the Granny Ripper carried the severed head of one of her 11 victims downstairs in a SAUCEPAN'

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EXCLUSIVE: The never-before-seen grainy footage shows alleged Russian cannibal serial killer Tamara Samsonova, dubbed the 'Granny Ripper', carrying the severed head of her last known victim down the stairs in a saucepan. Samsonova, 68, is suspected of killing 11 people in a 20-year reign of terror. She is accused of drugging or poisoning her victims before dismembering them and leaving their body parts in plastic bags around St Petersberg, Russia. Samsonova was caught after limbs and a torso belonging to her latest victim, pensioner Valentina Ulanova, 79, for whom Samsonova was a carer, were discovered in a bag. Detectives studied CCTV footage and linked the crime back to Samsonova, whose husband disappeared 12 years ago. Inside the 'Granny Ripper's' flat they found a diary which described in grisly detail how she confessed to killing at least ten more victims since 1995. Detectives are poring over the diary to see if Samsonova's entries link to anymore disappearances in the city. One of her diary entries read: 'I killed my tenant Volodya, cut him to pieces in the bathroom with a knife, put the pieces of his body in plastic bags and threw them away in the different parts of Frunzensky district.'

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Ahlam El Brinis aims to make history with Miss Italy title

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Ahlam El Brinis, a model from Moroccan descent, is planning on becoming Miss Italy despite scathing criticism.

20 year-old model Ahlam El Brinis of Moroccan descent has her eyes set on making history as the first Muslim Miss Italy.

As far as her ambitions are concerned, the going has not been good for Ahlam El Brinis, since the model has received flak and insults, abuses on social media. Cynics and critics have accused the model of trying to insult Islam, by taking part in the beauty contest. Ahlam El Brinis has been criticized for wearing revealing clothes and not sporting a veil.

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Afghan men in military uniform kill two foreign troops

LASHKAR GAH: Two men wearing the uniform of Afghan security forces on Wednesday opened fire on NATO troops in the country’s south, killing two before the attackers were shot dead, the foreign forces said.

Violence has increased sharply across Afghanistan since foreign forces formally ended their combat mission last year, leaving a small contingent of about 12,000 NATO troops to train Afghan forces against a Taliban insurgency.

The foreign forces heading the Resolute Support mission said the incident took place in the restive province of Helmand, where government forces are frequently targeted by militant attacks.

“Two Resolute Support service members died early this morning, when two individuals wearing Afghan National Defense and Security Forces uniforms opened fire on their vehicle,” the alliance said in a statement.

The statement did not give further information on the exact location of the incident and nationalities of those killed, but most foreign forces operating in Helmand are American.

A regional official said the incident involved two apparent Afghan special forces firing on their allies at the former Camp Bastion, a major base handed over to Afghan forces last year.

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Gujarat hit by violent caste-related protests

NEW DELHI: India deployed paramilitary forces and imposed a curfew in Gujarat on Wednesday after violence broke out at a protest led by a powerful clan to demand more government jobs and college places.

India deployed paramilitary forces and imposed a curfew in Gujarat on Wednesday after violence broke out at a protest led by a powerful clan to demand more government jobs and college places.

The protests pose a challenge to the authority of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who ran Gujarat for more than a decade before winning last year’s general election.

At least half a million members of the Patidar, or Patel, community rallied on Tuesday in Ahmedabad to demand changes to policies that, they argue, unfairly favour groups at the lower end of India’s social order.

Clashes broke out after the arrest of the movement’s leader, 21-year-old activist Hardik Patel, forcing police to fire teargas and to baton-charge protesters.

“The agitators clashed with the police and members of the lower castes. They have burnt down nine police stations and over three dozen buses,” P.C. Thakur, Gujarat’s top police officer, told Reuters.

“We had to impose a curfew to control the clashes. Offices, trading houses and educational institutions will not open today.”

The Patels, a wealthy business community in India and overseas, have been a driving force in the country’s economic growth. The community dominates the thriving diamond trade, oil processing and the textile industry.

But they say that caste-based reservations deprive them of opportunities. They insist the government should put an end to affirmative action policies that favour Muslims, low-caste Hindus and Other Backward Classes – a collective term covering socially and educationally deprived groups.

Caste-based reservations has always been a sensitive issue in India, used often as a tool for what is called vote-bank politics.

In a recent speech, Modi said that India must overcome its caste-based divisions, and work towards a more merit-based society. Modi comes from a lowly caste included in the Other Backward Classes, and has made much of his rise to power from humble origins as the son of a tea seller.

Caste politics are likely to play a role in a forthcoming state election in Bihar, whose chief minister Nitish Kumar belongs to the Patel community and has sympathised with the Gujarat protesters.

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Chairman Sindh HEC Dr. Asim Hussain arrested

KARACHI: Chairman of Sindh Higher Education Commission (HEC) Dr. Asim Hussain was arrested on Wednesday, ARY News reports.

According to details, Dr. Asim Hussain was taken into custody by law enforcement agencies, dressed in plain clothes, when he was conducting interviews for the position of Vice Chancellors.

Sources have stated that National Accountability Bureau (NAB) officials have arrested the Sindh HEC Chairman. However, a spokesman of NAB Sindh has denied the claims.

It is being said that there were several inquiries about irregularities being conducted against Dr. Asim Hussain. He had got pre-arrest bail by the Sindh High Court (SHC).

He is also a former petroleum minister and owner of many private educational institutions and hospitals.

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Chinese firms to compete for eastern route contracts

ISLAMABAD: 

In a major step towards the execution of infrastructure projects under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, Pakistan on Wednesday approved the awarding of contracts for the construction of two eastern alignment schemes to Chinese firms.

The Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) of the Cabinet decided to grant the contracts for engineering design, procurements and construction to execute the 392-kilometre Multan-Sukkur section of the Lahore-Karachi motorway and the 120km long Thakot-Havelian section of Karakoram Highyway-II (KKH-II).

Since China is providing concessionary loans for both the projects, the contracts will be awarded in government-to-government mode, waiving the condition of international competitive bidding. However, there will still be a competition among Chinese state-owned companies and Beijing has forwarded a set of three names for each of the project.

The ECC, while approving the award of the contracts to Chinese firms, noted that the mechanism for such projects was already covered under article-II of the framework agreement signed by Pakistan and China in April, according to an official handout.

For implementation of the Rs95.4 billion KKH-II Thakot- Havelian section, China has forwarded the names of China Construction Company, China State Construction Engineering Company and China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation, according to National Highway Authority (NHA) officials. The NHA has been mandated to execute these projects and Rs20.5 billion from the current fiscal year’s budget have been allocated for this purpose.

For the Rs259.4 billion Multan-Sukkur section of Lahore-Karachi Motorway, Beijing forwarded the names of China Construction Company, China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation and Syno Hydro Company, said the officials. Rs50 billion have been earmarked for this project in the current fiscal year.

The winning firms will be picked up by end of this month, said the officials. They added the financial agreement with China Export-Import Bank will be signed by October and the firms will be mobilised to commence the construction work in the same month.

The ECC on Wednesday also approved the issuance of sovereign guarantees by the finance ministry in respect of syndicated term finance facility amounting to Rs7.5 billion for the power sector. The amount has been obtained for reducing the circular debt, which jumped to over Rs600 billion including Rs325 billion that the government has parked in a holding company.

The committee, meanwhile, deferred the approval of the automobile policy amid transparency concerns. Finance Minister Ishaq Dar directed the industries ministry to place the policy on its website and accommodate changes recommended by people.

ECC also extended the deadline for export of surplus wheat from Punjab and Sindh to September 30, 2015. It also approved the exemption of 5% sales tax on wheat bran.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 13^th, 2015. 

Read more: ECC

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