Cannes auction of space trip with DiCaprio raises 1.2 million euros for charity

CANNES – A trip to space with Hollywood actor Leonardo DiCaprio raised 1.2 million euros ($1.5 million) for charity at a glitzy fundraiser at the Cannes film festival on Thursday.

At the 20th annual event organized by amfAR, the Foundation for AIDS Research, DiCaprio emerged as the mystery guest to accompany the winner on a Virgin Galactic flight into space.

Actress Sharon Stone said the winner would spend three days in training with DiCaprio in Mexico before blast-off.

“You don’t get to go to outer space every day with a handsome movie star,” said Stone, dressed in a tight-fitting white dress with a gold snake trim down the back.

The bidding started at 1 million euros ($1.29 million).

The auction brochure for the star-studded gala held at the five-star Hotel du Cap-Eden-Roc in Antibes, France, near Cannes, said DiCaprio and the winning bidder would be among the first 1,000 people to leave the planet.

The winning bidder, Vasily Klyukin, 37, a Russian living in Monaco, said he had always wanted to go into space.

“I want to be a bit daring,” Klyukin, who works in real estate, told Reuters. “I will have to give up smoking now for sure!”

After the winning bid from Klyukin — who also bought a gold and diamond necklace for 400,000 euros ($517,000) — Stone announced two other tickets were available on the flight. They raised another 1.8 million euros ($2.3 million).

The auction raised 25 million euros ($32.3 million) in total, more than double last year’s sum of 11 million euros($14.2 million).

The amfAR gala is the biggest fundraising event at the world’s largest film festival. The benefit was first hosted by Elizabeth Taylor.

The list of stars attending Thursday’s event included DiCaprio, Cannes jury members Nicole Kidman and Christopher Waltz, singers Kylie Minogue and Janet Jackson, and actors Adrien Brody, Jessica Chastain and Goldie Hawn.

The evening featured performances by gold-clad Shirley Bassey singing “Goldfinger” and British pop band Duran Duran.

Introducing the event, supermodel Heidi Klum said it raised more than 10 million euros ($12.9 million) a year for AIDS research.

Other auction items included tickets to Hollywood events, a Damien Hirst painting, an Annie Leibovitz family portrait, the chance to star in four movies and a private performance from Simon Le Bon and John Taylor of Duran Duran.

source: interaksyon.com

Google, Facebook in bidding war to buy Waze for $1 billion: report

Google Inc is considering buying Israeli mobile satellite navigation start-up Waze Inc, which may lead to a bidding war with Facebook Inc, Bloomberg news reported, citing people familiar with the matter.

Waze is seeking more than $1 billion and is fielding expressions of interest from multiple parties, said Bloomberg, citing a source.

Other media have reported that Facebook Inc has held talks to buy Waze for as much as $1 billion.

Google and other parties approached Waze after the Facebook talks became public but none of the bidders are close to clinching a deal, Bloomberg said, adding that the start-up might decide to remain independent.

Waze could not immediately be reached for comment. Google did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Waze uses satellite signals from members’ smartphones to generate maps and traffic data, which it then shares with other users, offering real-time traffic info.

source: interaksyon.com

Comelec to disqualify indelible ink supplier for failure to meet technical specs

MANILA, Philippines – The Commission on Elections (Comelec) on Tuesday announced the disqualification of the winning bidder for the supply of 520,000 bottles of indelible ink after the company failed to meet technical and chemical specifications.

This means that the second lowest bidder will qualify for the supply of indelible ink after PhilTint and Color Specialist Inc. failed in the post-qualification process, Comelec Chairman Sixto Brillantes Jr. said.

The contract was for P72.3 million.

If they don’t follow the requirements specified in the bid documents, this is a ground for disqualification, Brillantes said, referring to PhilTint samples that were erased from the finger after solvents were applied.

Citing the procurement law, Brillantes said the Comelec is allowed to choose the next lowest bidders to present samples for testing until such time that it finds one that can stand against application of any solvents.

Earlier, former Comelec lawyer Melchor Magdamo said PhilTint and Color Specialist Inc. has “controversial roots traceable” to OTC Paper Supply, the supplier of P690-million worth of ballot secrecy folders used in the first automated election in 2010. At the time, the Comelec scuttled its planned purchase of the overpriced folders costing P380 each.

Magdamo asked Comelec to closely monitor the procurement of indelible ink, indicating possible irregularity in the bid.

Acting on this information, Brillantes said the second lowest bidder will be asked to present the samples of indelible ink for testing to the Bids and Awards Committee in a post-qualification process before awarding the project. The next lowest bidders will follow.

Asked if the second lowest bidder is eligible for the procurement of indelible ink if the winning bidder has been disqualified, Brillantes said, “Yes.”

“We will just declare the second lowest bidder as the winning bidder, lalabas na siya ang (he will come out as) lowest bidder, and it will be posted,” Brillantes said.

The bidding rules state that, “In the event the samples of bidders with LCB (lowest calculated bid) did not pass the technical evaluation, the bidder with the second lowest LCB shall undergo post-qualification processes and testing of its sample, and so on and so forth until the lowest calculated responsive bid is finally determined.”

The same rules require that indelible ink must “contain at least 7% of the silver nitrate. The stain on the nail, cuticle, and the first joint of the finger (second distal phalanx) must not be removed completely by any of the solvents specified in Section VII of the Bidding Documents; otherwise, the bidder would be post-disqualified for submitting non-responsive technical bids in the form of samples.”

source: interaksyon.com