10 things you need to know this Tuesday morning

Good morning! Here is today’s summary from Nigerian Newspapers 1. The Nigeria LNG Limited has formally issued a demand notice for $315,598,823.29 judgment debt to the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency. The NLNG said in a statement that the sum represented the payments it made under protest to the agency since 2013, as well as direct and shipping losses it incurred due to the initial two-day blockade of the Bonny Channel by NIMASA in May 2013. 2. A Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Dr. Olisa Agbakoba, has urged the Federal High Court in Abuja to restrain President Muhammadu Buhari from continuing to hold the office of the Minister of Petroleum Resources. The SAN hinged his decision on Section 138 of the 1999 Constitution, which forbids the President from “holding any other executive office or paid employment.” 3. The World Bank has disagreed with the Minister of Finance, Mrs. Kemi Adeosun, on the need for the Federal Government to borrow more in order to develop the nation’s infrastructure and stimulate the economy. The World Bank while speaking through its Senior Economist, Gloria Joseph-Raji, on Monday in Abuja, said that the cost of borrowing or paying interest on Nigeria’s debt was not sustainable as revenues to make such payment had dried up. 4. The Minister of Health, Prof. Isaac Adewole, has said all the Monkey Pox test samples obtained from Lagos tested negative. He, however said only four cases of monkeypox have been confirmed in Nigeria. 5. There was serious tension in Delta State as Armed Aladja, Ogbe-Ijoh youths engaged themselves in a gun battle. The youths in Udu and Warri South-West Local Government Areas have been engaging in communal clash. Several houses and other properties in Ogbe-Ijoh community were destroyed during the melee. 6. The Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund, Christine Lagarde; a former Minister of Finance, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala have stated that Nigeria, Argentina and other top countries battling corruption should use tools that can help reduce procurement costs by about 60 per cent. They urged the countries to strengthen institutions, provide incentives against corruption and deploy more technology in order to overcome the hydra-headed problem of corruption. 7. Over 27 persons have been killed while asleep in Nkiedonwhro community, Bassa Local Government Area of Plateau State by unknown gunmen suspected to be Fulani militants. The killings happened barely 48 hours after the imposition of a dusk-to-dawn curfew by Governor Simon Lalong in the LGA. 8. The inferno that engulfed the Abuja residence of the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Dr. Ibe Kachikwu, was a “minor fire incident”, the ministry has stated. The Director, Press Relations in the Ministry, Mr Idang Alibi, said there was no substantial damage. 9. The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) yesterday suffered a serious upset when a faction of the party led by Prince Kenneth Emeakayi staged a rally at the Alex Ekwueme Square Awka and disowned the party’s candidate in the November 18 governorship election, Mr. Oseloka Henry Obaze. The faction with the name Anambra Grassroots Movement (AGM) and made up of the original PDP members and leaders declared that Obaze was not a registered member of PDP. 10. Tension has allegedly engulfed Sunshine Stars players following reports that no fewer than 20 of them will need to get the sack to make the Akure Premier League side stronger ahead of the new season. Sunshine battled against relegation in the larger part of last season – and a late surge saw them come 10th in the 20-team league.

Get ready to pay for news on Google

Google Monday announced new steps to help struggling news organizations, including an end to a longstanding “first click free” policy to generate fresh revenues for publishers hurt by the shift from print to digital. The moves come amid mounting criticism that online platforms are siphoning off the majority of revenues as more readers turn to digital platforms for news. “I truly believe that Google and news publishers actually share a common cause,” said Google Vice President Philipp Schindler. “Our users truly value high quality journalism.” Google announced a series of measures, the most significant of which would be to replace the decade-old policy of requiring news organizations to provide one article discovered in a news search without subscribing — a standard known as “first click free.” This will be replaced by a “flexible sampling” model that will allow publishers to require a subscription if they choose at any time. “We realize that one size does not fit all,” said Richard Gingras, Google’s vice president for news. This will allow news organizations to decide whether to show articles at no cost or to implement a “paywall” for some or all content. Gingras said the new policy, effective Monday, will be in place worldwide. He said it was not clear how many publishers would start implementing an immediate paywall as a result. “The reaction to our efforts has been positive,” he told a conference call announcing the new policy. “This is not a silver bullet to the subscription market. It is a very competitive market for information. And people buy subscriptions when they have a perception of value.” Google said it is recommending a “metering” system allowing 10 free articles per month as the best way to encourage subscriptions. – One-click subscriptions – The California tech giant also said it would work with publishers to make subscriptions easier, including allowing readers to pay with their Google or Android account to avoid a cumbersome registration process. “We think we can get it down to one click, that would be superb,” Gingras said. He explained people are becoming more accustomed to paying for news, but that a “sometimes painful process of signing up for a subscription can be a turn off. That’s not great for users or for news publishers who see subscriptions as an increasingly important source of revenue.” Google would share data with the news organizations to enable them to keep up the customer relationship, he added. “We’re not looking to own the customer,” he said. “We will provide the name of user, the email and if necessary the address.” Gingras said Google is also exploring ways “to use machine learning to help publishers recognize potential subscribers,” employing the internet giant’s technology to help news organizations. He added that Google was not implementing the changes to generate revenues for itself, but that some financial details had not been worked out. Google does not intend to take a slice of subscription revenues, he noted. “Our intent is to be as generous as possible,” he said. Research firm eMarketer estimates that Google and Facebook will take in 63 percent of digital advertising revenues in 2017 — making it harder for news organizations to compete online. Facebook is widely believed to be working on a similar effort to help news organizations drive more subscriptions. Google created a “Digital News Initiative” in Europe in 2015 which provides funding for innovative journalism projects.

10 things you need to know this Sunday morning

Good morning! Here is today’s summary from Nigerian Newspapers: 1. President Muhammadu Buhari has said the clamour for restructuring gave some groups which he described as “highly irresponsible” the opportunity to begin to call for the breakup of the country. He, however, vowed never to allow such happen under him. The President made this known in a national speech to mark the nation’s 57th independence anniversary on Saturday. 2. The National Chairman of the Joint Health Sector Unions, Mr. Biobelemoye Josiah, has announced the suspension of the strike embarked on by the union about 10 days ago. He discussed that national executive council of the union would meet on Tuesday to make its final decision on their agitation. 3. Report says Boko Haram terrorists made a fresh attempt at a military outpost in Bama, killing two persons, including a policeman and an Internally Displaced Person. The Director, Army Public Rations, 7 Division, Colonel Kingsley Samuel, confirmed the development. 4. Men of the Inspector General of Police Intelligence Response Team (IRT) have uncovered a truck yard belonging to kidnap kingpin, Chukwudumeme Onwumadike, a.k.a Evans. The police detectives have also arrested secretary to the billionaire criminal, Ngozika Ezeokoye, who had since gone into hiding. 5. There was confusion in Agodi zoo, in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital on Saturday after one of the lions in the zoo attacked an attendant, Mr Hamzat Oyekunle, who eventually died of injuries sustained from the attack. Report says Oyekunle had been feeding the lion for over five years, and had built a very good relationship with the wild animal. 6. President Muhammadu Buhari had in a nationwide broadcast marking the nation’s independence anniversary blamed leaders of the South East for not cautioning those agitating for the independence of Biafra. He said the leaders who witnessed the civil war should have narrated to their youths what actually happened then and how horrendous it was. 7. The Trade Union Congress of Nigeria (TUC) has expressed displeasure at Nigeria’s “tale of conundrum” coupled with various crises since her independence 57 years ago. TUC in its independence message on Saturday, said Nigeria at this stage still “dances naked to the full glare of the whole world while its roof is on fire”. 8. National Industrial Court of Nigeria (NICN), Akure Division, has ordered MTN Nigeria Communications Limited and MTN International, Mauritius, to pay its former Network Group Operations Manager, Mr Paul Odunewu, $13,419,728.54, £10,000 and N2,540,000 (N4,825,036,735.9) over wrongful termination of employment. Justice Oyejoju Oyewunmi made the order following Odunewu’s suit challenging his 2006 termination and the deprivation of his entitlements including share options valued at $13,144,512.00. 9. The Nigeria Labour Congress in Ekiti State has faulted Governor Ayodele Fayose over his claim that he owes workers in the state only four months’ salaries. The State Chairman of the NLC, Ade Adesanmi, said state workers were owed about eight months’ salaries and not four months as claimed. 10. Former Abia State Governor, Orji Uzor Kalu, has claimed that the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu, is hiding in London and that he escaped from Nigeria through Malaysia. Kalu said this in an interview.

Ex Manchester United Boss David Moyes Fined £30,000 For Slap Comment To Reporter (Read)

Former Sunderland manager David Moyes has been fined £30,000 by the FA after telling BBC reporter Vicki Sparks she might “get a slap” in March. Moyes’ comments came following the..........See More