The couple would make exclusive content for the US streaming site focused on uplifting stories, the paper suggested.

If confirmed, the deal would give a global platform for the Obamas, bypassing mainstream US media such as Fox News.

Netflix told the BBC it had no comment to make about the reports.

‘Inspire’

Eric Schultz, a senior adviser to the former president, did not confirm the plans but said they would make sense.

“President and Mrs Obama have always believed in the power of storytelling to inspire,” he told the paper.

“Throughout their lives, they have lifted up stories of people whose efforts to make a difference are quietly changing the world for the better. As they consider their future personal plans, they continue to explore new ways to help others tell and share their stories.”

The New York Times said one possible show idea was for Mr Obama to moderate debates on issues such as health care, climate change and immigration- all of which dominated his eight years in the White House.

But the paper said there were no plans to use the shows to attack conservative critics or Donald Trump.

The streaming service’s mix of original drama, films and other programming has proved popular globally, with subscriber numbers reaching nearly 118 million at the end of 2017.

And it has been investing heavily in content as it tries to grow that subscriber base – with hit shows such as Stranger Things and Black Mirror as well as films and documentaries.

It is unclear how much the Obamas will be paid if a deal is struck.

Mr Obama already connects directly to an audience through social media. He has has more than 100 million twitter followers and his Facebook page has been liked by 55 million users.

–

Source: BBC

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The streaming video service will also increase subscription charges in some European countries, a spokeswoman said.

A standard UK plan will rise 50p to £7.99 a month, while a premium subscription for four simultaneous users jumps £1 to £9.99 a month.

The standard US plan increases by $1 to $10.99 a month, with a $2 rise to $13.99 for the premium option.

A basic subscription in the UK, which does not offer high definition viewing, remains at £5.99 a month.

The increases apply immediately for new customers, while existing users will be notified of the change 30 days in advance.

Germany and France are among the other countries where prices will rise. Subscriptions were tweaked in Canada, Latin America and some Nordic countries earlier this year.

Netflix said in July it has 104 million subscribers globally, while revenues rose 32% in the second quarter to $2.8bn.

Shares in Netflix closed 5.4% in New York, bringing the stock’s gain this year to 56%.

The price rises come as Netflix faces growing competition from Amazon and other sites such as Hulu in the US.

Image copyrightGETTY IMAGES

The company continues to spending heavily on original programming such as The Crown, Stranger Things and House of Cards.

It also promises 40 feature films this year ranging from “big-budget popcorn films to grassroots independent cinema”.

One of those titles Mudbound, which Variety describes as “an epic about race and poverty in the 1940s Mississippi Delta”, starring Mary J. Blige and Carey Mulligan.

The film, which premiered at the Toronto film festival last month, is available to stream from 17 November – the same day it opens in some US cinemas.

Some critics say it is a contender for the Academy Awards and would be the first Netflix feature to be in the Oscars race.

–

Source: BBC

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Company leaders said the gains were a sign that investment in new shows and movies was paying off as online television becomes more popular.

The firm is behind shows such as 13 Reasons Why, about teen suicide, and political drama House of Cards.

Boss Reed Hastings said it was “the rewards of doing great content”.

Netflix shares rose more than 10% in after-hours trading following the announcement of its second-quarter earnings.

Company leaders said new content creation was critical to competing against other online rivals such as Amazon and YouTube, as well as traditional television.

They said generating new content also meant streaming services were expanding the size of the overall market.

“The largely exclusive nature of each service’s content means that we are not direct substitutes for each other, but rather complements,” company leaders wrote in a letter to shareholders.

“The shift from linear TV to on-demand viewing is so big and there is so much leisure time, many internet TV services will be successful.”

Netflix said it added about 5.2 million members during the quarter, mostly from overseas.

International members now account for about half of Netflix subscribers.

Netflix has cultivated those audiences with movies such as Okja, a film made by one of South Korea’s top directors about a young girl’s quest to recover a giant companion from a multi-national corporation.

The company also said it expected international members to help boost profits for the year – a first for that part of the business.

The growth helped Netflix to report a 32% rise in second quarter revenues to $2.8bn, and it expects revenues to reach nearly $3bn in the third quarter.

Profits for the three months to June were $65.6m, up about 60% year-on-year.

–

Source: BBC

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The video streaming company added 3.2 million international customers in the last three months, far more than the 2 million analysts had predicted.

In the US, numbers rose 21% to 370,000 as hit shows such as Stranger Things and Narcos won over more subscribers.

It helped quarterly revenues rise 31% to $2.29bn (£1.88bn), sparking a 20% jump in Netflix’s share price.

In the three months to the end of September Netflix had about 83.3 million subscribers.

The company said on Monday that it plans to license content to existing online service providers in China rather than operate its own service in China in the near term.

Netflix has been expanding in international markets to counter slowing growth in the US. The service has a strong presence in more than 130 markets worldwide, except China.

Concern that Netflix’s growth was slowing had overshadowed the company. Its shares had fallen about 13% this year.

But in after-hours trading on Wall Street the shares jumped 20% to about $119.

Analysts said that the figures should dispel fears that Netflix was running out of momentum, at least in the short term.

Neil Saunders, chief executive of retail consultants Conlumino, said: “We maintain our view that over the next few years international expansion will pay dividends, but for the current cycle Netflix will be very reliant on domestic performance to ensure it ends the fiscal year on a high note.”

–

Source: BBC

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The court presided over by Justice LL Mensah said the Ministry’s failure to pay statutory funds into the GETFund was illegal.

The court also held that the applicant, Richard Nyamah had capacity to bring the application contrary to the argument by the Attorney General (AG) that he had no personal interest.

Mr. Nyamah filed an Ex-parte motion in 2013 praying the Court to compel the Finance Ministry to pay the outstanding money into the GETFund as required by law.

According to him, the Ministry owes the GETFund approximately GHC 687 million.

The debt, he says, has halted the GETFund’s infrastructural development plans and other projects it intended to embark on.

Speaking to Citi News, Mr. Nyamah said the court’s ruling signifies victory for Ghanaians.

“It is victory for Ghanaians as a whole and I don’t take this as my personal victory because the GETFund cuts across from the tertiary level to the primary level,” he said.

Meanwhile, lead counsel for Richard Nyamah, Sean Opoku, told Citi News, he will file another motion to seek for a definite time line for which the Ministry must make the payment.

According to him, the Court only instructed the Ministry to pay the debt but failed to give a definite time for the payment to be made.

The GETFund is a public trust set up by an Act of Parliament in 2000 with the core mandate of providing funding to supplement government effort in the provision of infrastructure and facilities within the public sector from the pre-tertiary to tertiary level.

It also provides funding to support the procurement of education equipment and promotion of staff development and research especially at the tertiary level.

However, GETFund is among the many statutory organizations owed by the government.

By: Marian Efe Ansah/citifmonline.com/Ghana

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His Lordship, Justice L.L Mensah has finally fixed June 6, 2014 to rule on a law suit brought against the state by youth activist of the opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP), Richard Nyamah.

 Richard Nyamah, the Exparte filed an order of mandamus praying the Accra Fast Track High Court to compel the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning (MOFEP) to defray its accumulated debt owed the Ghana Education Trust Fund (GETfund).

 The Attorney Generals Department in response filed an affidavit in opposition challenging Richard Nyamah’s locus.

 Attached to the Attorney Generals Department was a copy of a document to prove that the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning has from January to July, 2013 paid almost GHC 400 million into the GETfund account.

 Richard Nyamah’s Counsel, Shean Poku detected that the Attorney Generals Department response was not signed by a Commissioner of Oath.

 The learned Judge, His Lordship Justice L.L Mensah accordingly directed the Attorney Generals Department to do the right thing.

 On Tuesday May 13, 2014, Richard Nyamah’s counsel said his client was seeking to ensure that the machinery of public administration functioned properly.

 The Attorney Generals Department insisted Richard Nyamah had no capacity to sue the state for which reason his motion should be dismissed.

By: Abdul Karim Naatogmah/citifmonline.com/Ghana

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Richard Nyamah is suing government for its indebtedness to the Ghana Education Trust Fund (GETFund).

According to him, the Ministry of Finance has since 2013 failed to pay the compulsory percentage of VAT returns into the GETFund accounts as required by law.

This, he claimed has halted the GETFund’s expansion of infrastructural development and sponsoring of Ghanaian students pursuing further studies abroad.

The Attorney General’s Department in their application in opposition claimed Richard Nyamah had no locus as an individual to sue the state for which reason his law suit should be dismissed.

However, Lawyer Shean Poku, Counsel for Richard Nyamah at the last sitting argued that his client was qualified as a citizen to pray the court to compel the Ministry of Finance to defray the accumulated debt owed GETFund.

His Lordship Justice L.L Mensah is expected to either uphold or dismiss Richard Nyamah’s law suit.

By: Abdul Karim Naatogmah/citifmonline.com/Ghana

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