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Facebook to Ramp up Video Viewing Features

Facebook said on Tuesday it is testing an array of features aimed at getting people to watch more videos at the leading social network.

The new tools come in a growing challenge to YouTube, which would be sidestepped as viewers flit between videos at Facebook.

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Mobile Ad-Blockers Growing Popularity Threatens Huge Losses

Mobile Internet sites face a new threat as millions download ad-blockers to their phones and tablets, removing pesky adverts but potentially wiping out billions of dollars in advertising revenue.

There were close to 200 million downloads of ad-blocking software by mid-2015, according to research firm PageFair, but only 1.6 percent of the blocking was done on mobile devices rather than computers.

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Study: Mobile Phones 'Transforming' Africa but Growth to Slow

The rapid spread of mobile phones across Sub-Saharan Africa is transforming the region, but record levels of growth are due to slow sharply, an industry report said this week.

The industry contributed more than $100 billion to the region's economy last year -- equivalent to 5.7 percent of gross domestic product, according to a study released at a conference in Cape Town by the GSMA association which represents mobile operators.

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Samsung's Lees Top Asia's Richest Families List

South Korea's Lee family, which controls the formidable Samsung conglomerate, topped an inaugural list of Asia's 50 richest families published Thursday by Forbes Asia magazine.

The family had a net worth of $26.6 billion as of late September, with second- and third-generation members now running more than 50 businesses, the magazine said.

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A Ping Pong Robot & a Mirror that Really Doesn't Lie, Unveiled in Japan

A ping pong playing robot, a flying origami bird and a mirror that some might find a little too honest for comfort were on display at a huge tech show in Japan on Wednesday.

The gadgets are all part of this year's Cutting-edge IT & Electronics Comprehensive Exhibition (CEATEC), Asia's largest electronics fair, outside Tokyo.

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Snowden Hails EU for Quashing Transatlantic Data Deal

America's most-wanted whistleblower Edward Snowden on Tuesday hailed the EU's top court's decision to strike down a transatlantic data deal used by companies like Facebook to send citizens' personal data to the U.S.

Europe's Court of Justice on Tuesday found that the "Safe Harbor" agreement which the United States and European Commission reached in 2000 did not sufficiently guarantee the protection of Europeans' personal data.

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EU Court Strikes Down Transatlantic Data Deal in Facebook Case

The EU's top court on Tuesday ruled that a key transatlantic data deal relied on by companies such as Facebook was invalid in the light of spying revelations in the Edward Snowden scandal.

"The Court of Justice declares that the (European) Commission’s U.S. Safe Harbour Decision is invalid," it said in a decision on a case brought against Facebook by Austrian law student Max Schrems.

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Facebook, Eutelsat in African Internet Satellite Hook-Up

European satellite operator Eutelsat Communications and social media giant Facebook said Monday they are working jointly to deliver satellite broadband Internet to connectivity-hungry sub-Saharan Africa.

The firms revealed they have reached a multi-year agreement with satellite communication firm Spacecom to use the entire broadband payload of the AMOS-6 satellite due to come on stream in the second half of next year and provide coverage for large swathes of sub-Saharan Africa, after identifying "pent-up demand for connectivity".

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People-Rating App Sparks Firestorm

Creators of an app that will let people assign ratings to those they know vowed to launch as planned next month as planned despite online outrage at the idea.

Peeple has been likened by critics and supporters alike as a Yelp-style review service at which people are rated, without their consent, the same way a person might give a grade to a restaurant or an airline.

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German Wind Power Output Topping 2014 Total

Germany's wind power generation by September surpassed last year's total, thanks to favorable weather conditions and an expansion of wind farms, industry bodies said Thursday.

The cumulative total production from land-based and offshore wind farms so far this year was 59 billion kilowatt hours, topping the 57.4 billion kWh for all of 2014.

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