Transcript

Good morning, and welcome to Just a Moment News. I’m Erika, and today is October 24, 2023. Let’s dive into today’s headlines.

First up, we have the stratospheric rise of Lionel Messi’s pink jersey. Since joining Inter Miami, Messi’s decision has sparked an unprecedented demand for the team’s pink jersey. With nearly 500,000 requests for the jerseys just days after his announcement, Adidas had to scramble to meet the demand. The jerseys sold out almost instantly, leading to an influx of counterfeits in the market. This high demand has made Inter Miami’s pink jersey Adidas’ best-selling soccer jersey in North America, surpassing major European clubs. The phenomenon has also resulted in skyrocketing ticket prices for Inter Miami games, and even David Beckham himself has had difficulty getting his hands on a pink Messi jersey.

Next, we have a fascinating discovery about the moon’s age. Scientists have revised the moon’s age to be 40 million years older than previously thought, dating its formation at over 4.46 billion years ago. This determination was made through the analysis of zircon crystals from a rock fragment collected on the moon in 1972. The researchers used a technique called atom probe tomography to confirm the crystals’ age, shedding light on the moon’s formation when a Mars-sized object collided with early Earth. This event is crucial for understanding Earth’s habitability, as the moon stabilizes our planet’s rotational axis and impacts various terrestrial ecosystems.

Moving on, we have a story about the high costs of Johannesburg council meetings. These meetings reportedly cost up to 600,000 rand per session, with a significant portion allocated to catering for the 270 councillors. Former Speaker Vasco da Gama claims that catering alone costs 800 rand per person, while current Speaker Colleen Makhubele disputes this, stating that the last meeting cost less than 400,000 rand. These expenses come at a time when the city is facing a fiscal crisis, with a debt of 24 billion rand and irregular expenditures amounting to 20.8 billion rand. In contrast, other South African municipalities like eThekwini and Cape Town have significantly lower council meeting costs, with some even eliminating catering to save funds. The high costs in Johannesburg raise eyebrows given the city’s financial woes and the practices of other municipalities.

In the realm of electric vehicles, Toyota is on the verge of a solid-state battery breakthrough. The automaker is nearing the capability to mass-produce solid-state batteries, potentially by 2027 or 2028. This breakthrough could halve the size and cost of the batteries while doubling an EV’s range to 1,200 km and reducing charging time to under 10 minutes. Toyota has partnered with Idemitsu, a Japanese oil company, to accelerate this technology. Solid-state batteries differ from current lithium-ion batteries by using a solid electrolyte instead of a liquid one, making them safer and more stable. This development could help Toyota catch up in the EV market, where it has lagged behind rivals like Tesla due to its focus on hybrids.

Shifting gears, we turn our attention to the music industry’s first reckoning with AI. YouTube, under its global head of music Lyor Cohen, is exploring AI tools for the industry, including a feature that would allow users to sound like popular artists. However, major music companies are hesitant about this development due to unresolved issues surrounding permission, attribution, and monetization. This comes at a time when the music industry is embracing technology to combat stagnating growth in streaming revenues. While YouTube already has tools like Content ID for copyright tracking, more advanced technology will be needed to properly credit multiple contributors in AI-generated content. This initiative raises important questions about copyright law and commercial partnerships between AI technology providers and artists.

Lastly, we have news from the world of cricket. Disney’s Hotstar has set a new global on-demand video streaming record by attracting 35 million concurrent viewers for a cricket match between India and Pakistan. This milestone surpasses the previous record held by Viacom18’s JioCinema. For Hotstar, this achievement is crucial as it seeks a buyer for its India operations after losing 20 million subscribers. Disney streams ICC World Cup matches for free in India to compete with Viacom18, which won the streaming rights for the IPL cricket series. The event aligns with Disney’s broader strategy as it prepares to discuss the sale of Star India, the entity controlling Hotstar. Preliminary talks for acquisition have involved Reliance and private equity firms. Disney aims to reach over 50 million concurrent viewers during the ongoing ICC World Cup.

That’s all for today’s headlines. Thank you for joining me on Just a Moment News. I’m Erika, and I’ll see you next time.

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