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The Future of Vending Machines; Pakistani High Court Orders Release Of Suspected Mumbai Killing Mastermind; Ferguson Police in Massive Manhunt for Shooters; UK Commemorates End of Combat Operations in Afghanistan; Twitter Bans Revenge Porn

Aired March 13, 2015 - 8:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


KRISTIE LU STOUT, HOST: I'm Kristie Lu Stout in Hong Kong. And welcome to News Stream where news and technology meet.

Now a Pakistani court orders the release of the alleged Mumbai attacks mastermind. We are live in India's capital with reaction.

Plus, a powerful cyclone bears down on the Vanuatu Islands.

And, the UK official ends combat operations in Afghanistan and pays tribute to the British troops who lost their lives there.

And we begin with breaking news, Pakistan's highest court has ordered the release of the alleged mastermind of the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks.

Now Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi was a top leader of the group Lashkar-e-Taiba and he and six other suspects in Pakistan have been accused in connection with

attacks on the Indian city that left more than 160 people dead.

Now heavily armed men stormed landmark buildings, including luxury hotels, a main train station, and a Jewish cultural center in a reign of

terror that lasted three days.

And the Islamabad high court has ruled Lakhvi's detention is illegal.

Now India has summoned Pakistan's high commissioner in anger at the court's decision. And for more on the ruling let's get straight to Sumnima

Udas. She joins us live from New Delhi. And Sumnima I mean tell us more about the thinking that led to this court order to release Lakhvi.

SUMNIMA UDAS, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Kristie, this case has gone through quite a few motions in the past few months. A lower anti-

terror court in Pakistan actually granted him bail back in December just a few days after that brutal attack on a school, the Taliban attack on the

school in Peshawar, Pakistan.

Then, the authorities in Pakistan actually rejected that. The supreme court also rejecting that bail in January. And then this case again moved

to the high court and of course today the high court granting him bail again saying that they simply don't have enough evidence against him to

prove that he was involved in the Mumbai attacks. The Mumbai Attacks of course was the most brutal terrorist attack in India back in 2008, some 166

people were killed. And as far as India is concerned, he was the mastermind of that attack. And as far as India is concerned, they've

provided enough evidence against him.

LU STOUT: So, Sumnima, how are top Indian officials are reacting to the Pakistan court decision?

UDAS: At least in the political circles with some outrage, actually. The minister of state from home affairs here commenting here a little while

ago saying that we are very upset that Pakistan is not taking this very seriously, or not taking very seriously all the steps which is necessary to

curb terrorism.

Now India, as I mentioned earlier, and he also said this today that India has repeatedly asked Pakistan to speed up that process, one minister

calling this trial as -- that it has moved in a glacial speed and he has said that again today to journalists here, went on to say we appealed to

the Pakistani government not to differentiate between the nature and character of terrorists saying, quote, there can not be bad or good

terrorists, a terrorist is a terrorist.

Some people have been reacting online here as well. Many of them saying, actually that India should snap all its ties with Pakistan.

Now there has been some movement in terms of the relations between the two countries since the 2008 attack. This have really -- the relationship

had really deteriorated between India and Pakistan, improved after a few years, but again after this we'll have to see what happens, Kristie.

LU STOUT: All right, Sumnima Udas reporting live for us from New Delhi. Many thanks indeed for that, Sumnima.

Now, hundreds of thousands of people in Vanuatu are huddling in the dark this hour. They're all waiting for a monster storm to pass.

Cyclone Pam, it's a category five storm, is one of the strongest to hit the South Pacific in years. UNICEF says it is preparing for the worst.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ALICE CLEMENTS, UNICEF PACIFIC: We simply don't know what we're going to be looking at tomorrow morning. At this point, the storm feels

incredibly strong. It feels -- you know, I responded to 2013 Typhoon Haiyan in the Philippines, which is also a colossal storm. This feels like

a familiar experience. And to that end, I'm incredibly worried about the amount of damage to shelters, the damage to obviously -- impact on life and

casualties.

Schools will probably be damaged or destroyed. Health centers will undoubtedly be flooded or damaged.

This country is going to need some serious assistance from the international community, because this storm is wrecking an awful lot of

damage right now.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LU STOUT: And that was Alice Clements of UNICEF saying she was incredibly worried speaking to CNN in the last hour.

Now let's bring up our meteorologist Chad Myers. He joins us now live. And Chad, where is this huge storm moving? And just how fierce is

it going to get?

CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: It's moving to the south, maybe southwest at about 20 kilometers per hour. I don't think it gets a lot

stronger from here, but that's really irrelevant. At 270 kilometers per hour, anyone who hasn't felt or even watch a Formula One car drive by has

no idea what type of speed that would be and what kind of wind damage that will occur right on that island, that Port Vila is located on.

The storm went right by the right the island Port Vila and it actually had wind from both directions for onshore flow from the east for awhile,

and then where -- the biggest city could be Port Vila. You can look it up on Google Maps or something, but it's on the west side of the island, now

those west winds are coming in at over 100, maybe 150 kilometers per hour.

And finally, traveling down to the south and those winds will be right along the central and southern islands at 100 to 120 miles per hour, which

is 160 to 180 kilometers per hour depending on what you want to use what the English for metric units, it is very, very fast and very, very

dangerous with swells in the ocean that could be going up to almost 12 meters. So 12 meter waves crashing on shore. People getting away from the

beaches on all these islands because the storm surge is very, very fierce.

And at least half a meter, I'm guessing, of rainfall on top of those volcano islands. The highest peaks with all that water starting rushing

back down to the people that are down along -- that live along the coast. So those rivers are certainly going to get out of their banks as they come

down.

Now these islands are very small, but the rainfall totals will be very, very impressive, especially in the highest of elevations and all of

that water, Kristie, is going to come straight down in flash flooding.

LU STOUT: Yeah, this is a fierce, a huge and very, very dangerous storm as you point out. Chad Myers reporting for us. Thank you very much

indeed for that, Chad.

Now in the United States, a manhunt is underway for the person who shot the two police officers in the town of Ferguson. Investigators say

that they have identified two people they want to question and they believe that one of them could be the shooter.

Now police chief called the attack an ambush. The officers are standing guard outside headquarters when they were shot.

Now there were visuals and prayers for the two officers as more protest marches were held in Ferguson. And some demonstrators, they worry

that the shooter could undercut their message against discrimination and violence.

Let's go straight to Alina Machado for an update. She joins us live in Ferguson. And Alina , first let's talk about the manhunt. Just how

close are police to identifying the shooter?

ALINA MACHADO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Kristie, it's hard to know, but we do know as you mentioned, that authorities have identified two

people of interest, two people they want to talk to and they believe one of them could be the shooter, the person responsible for this incident.

We know that so far, though, there have been no arrests in this case.

Now in the hours after the shooting, police were in the area talking to everyone. And we know that they went to a house that's just a few

blocks from here. We also know that they took in three people for questioning. Those people have since been released. And they told CNN

that they had nothing to do with the shooting.

They also say that police were questioning them about their whereabouts during the incident. They also were asked if they had seen

anything suspicious. And they say they did not.

Now police believe the shooter could have been as far away as 125 yards from the officers and they believe this because the officers. And

they believe this because the officers reported seeing muzzle flashes at that distance.

There is right now a $3,000 reward in this case. It's being offered thanks to the generosity of two Missouri congressman who donated the money.

They want to make sure that police have every sort of resource available to track down the people responsible for this. And because of the shooting,

the Ferguson police department will no longer be involved, will no longer be in charge of the security detail here during the protests. That

responsibility is now being given to two other agencies -- the St. Louis County Police Department as well as the Missouri State Highway Patrol,

Kristie.

LU STOUT: All right, Alina Machado there with the latest from Ferguson, Missouri. Many thanks indeed for that Alina.

Now we already knew that the U.S. regulator the Federal Communications Commission voted for an open internet, but now we know how they plan to do

it.

Now the FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler has driven home the backbone of the policy. Broadband networks must be fast, fair and open.

Now fast lanes are not to divide the internet into haves and have nots. And that means no one user will have priority over the other. It

also bans blocking.

Now consumers must get what we pay for, and that means unfettered access to lawful, online sites.

Now throttling is also off the table. now the rules say that degrading access can have the same effect as blocking, so internet service

providers will no longer be able to slow down or speed up certain content depending on who pays more.

You're watching News Stream. Still to come on the program, royals, the prime minister and veterans turn out in London to honor British forces

who served and lost their lives in the Afghan conflict.

And fighting for Tikrit: the Iraqi military carries out airstrikes against ISIS targets. We'll go live to Baghdad for the latest.

And a journey beneath the waves and back in time all using modern technology. Stick around.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LU STOUT: Welcome back.

Now Iraqi forces are still fighting ISIS militants to retake the city of Tikrit while the Sunni extremists are ramping up their offensive on

Ramadi.

Now a local official tells us at least 40 soldiers were killed there when ISIS blew up an army building. Plus, a new alliance could mean ISIS

has expanded its caliphate to West Africa, an unverified audio message from ISIS, says that the terror group accepts Boko Haram's pledge of allegiance.

Now for the very latest, CNN's Jomana Karadsheh is with us from Baghdad. And Jomana, we have joint Iraqi forces. They continue to push

into Tikrit. What's the latest?

JOMANA KARASHEH, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, these Iraqi forces, Kristie, are predominately made up of Shia militia along with Iraqi

security forces and some Sunni elements who are trying to recapture Tikrit. The forces, the commanders and fighters on the ground seem to be very

optimistic. They think that within a few days they're going to have full control of Tikrit.

Now so far they say they control more than 70 percent of the city. And they have been moving slowly. They've really been slowed down this

progress and advance by the resistance they are meeting along the way. They say that they have been into areas that have been completely booby

trapped.

Also our team yesterday, Ben Wedeman and team were near those front lines in Tikrit. And in one area alone, Kristie, they were told by the

commanders there on the ground that they found more than 500 IEDs. So just to give you an idea of what is really slowing down their advances according

to those militia on the ground there.

But they -- it does seem at this point in time that it's only a matter of time before they have full control of Tikrit. This is going to be a

significant victory for them. It will be the first major city that Iraqis would recapture after it had fell to ISIS last June.

But of course there are challenges ahead like holding any of this territory that they recapture from ISIS, Kristie.

LU STOUT: Now, Iraqi forces, as you mentioned, they need this victory, but why are they relying on Iran as well as these militias you

mentioned to make this advance into Tikrit?

KARADSHEH: Well, if we look at what happened last year, the Iraqi military came up against the biggest test. And they really failed by

losing major cities in this country in the face of that ISIS threat.

As we saw the Iraqi military in the north. They lost the second largest city in Iraq, Mosul, to ISIS. They were not able to stand their

ground and fight. And many would tell you here that if it weren't for these volunteers and Shia militias that were mobilized last summer, there

could have been more advances by ISIS. There's a feeling here that it was these Shia militias and this mobilization of the volunteers that stopped

ISIS from advancing into Baghdad last summer.

So they have -- they play a major role.

The Iraqi military officials here would tell you they need all the support and help they can get. And they'll take it from anyone at this

point, whether it is from Iran that we are seeing play a significant role on the battlefield for the first time so overtly when it comes to Tikrit

and also when it comes to the coalition airstrikes.

But of course there's a lot of concern, Kristie, about these militia and the Iranian role when it comes to Tikrit, a Sunni city, and also other

Sunni areas, real concern that this could -- this has sectarian implications there when you are -- when we're talking about these Sunni

cities and Shia militias that have been accused by rights organizations, by the Sunni population of human rights violations and at times allegations

of war crimes that have been committed by them in these areas that they have quote, unquote "liberated" from ISIS control.

So this -- what is going on in Tikrit now is a major test. How these forces act, when they get into Tikrit, how they act with the population

there is going to be very crucial in the fight ahead against ISIS in this country. And we've heard calls from the top Shia leadership here,

political and religious calling for restraint and respect of human rights from these forces when they go into areas like Tikrit -- Kristie.

LU STOUT: Yes. This is a major test. So much at stake in this Tikrit operation that's still underway. Many thanks indeed for your

reporting. Jomana Karadsheh there reporting live from Baghdad.

Now there is a threat of violence in Egypt with militant groups calling for Friday to be a black day.

Now U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry is there for a major conference on reviving Egypt's economy. He and the Egyptian president met moments ago

to discuss Egypt's security and the fight against ISIS. And Kerry also meets other regional leaders.

Now Britain is officially marking the end of combat operations in Afghanistan and remembering those who sacrificed their lives in the war.

The royal family, dignitaries and veterans attended a service of commemoration at St. Paul's Cathedral in London and paid tribute to the

British men and women who were involved in the war, including the 453 UK troops killed in the fighting.

Now the service is being followed by a parade through the streets of London. Phil Black is outside the cathedral and he joins me now.

And Phil, could you just walk us through today's service of commemoration?

PHIL BLACK, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Sure, Kristie.

The service itself wound up a short time ago. Behind me, dignitaries and VIPs, including the British prime minister -- you should be able to see

him over my shoulder there -- David Cameron, they're all standing there now waiting for what is set to be a parade involving the various services of

the British military.

Charles, the Prince of Wales will take the royal salute shortly from that position behind me.

What has been taking place here is a commemoration, as you say, to honor all the service and sacrifice that was involved in Britain's long war

in Afghanistan, a long war 13 years, an expensive war in every sense: 140,000 personnel served there, as you touched on 453 lost their lives, so

many others suffered physically, mentally; incredible, terrible injuries and trauma as well.

All of this is to honor them. And so that is why the queen and the royal family are here, including Prince Harry who himself served two tours

in this conflict.

It is all very much a grand occasion. The parade set to begin shortly. A flyby involving various aircraft that also was seen and took

action in Afghanistan itself. A grand occasion. Considerable pageantry, really, in that very British way, but by no means a celebration. This is a

somber day to mark the sacrifice and the service of Britain's military personnel in combat through that long conflict, Kristie.

LU STOUT: Yeah, a significant and somber day for British forces. Phil Black reporting live in London for us. Thank you.

You're watching News Stream. And up next a long lost World War II battleship has resurfaced today as the star of a live webcast. We'll

explain right after the break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LU STOUT: Coming to you live from Hong Kong, you're back watching News Stream.

Now South Korea's defense ministry says North Korea has fired seven service-to-air missiles into the Sea of Japan. Now, the U.S. and South

Korea are currently holding joint military exercises. North Korea routinely criticizes those military drills and recently said that they were

a smokescreen to conceal an invasion of the north.

Historians and archeologists got a never before seen treat thanks to Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen. His search team did a livestream tour of

what's believed to be the remains of the World War II Japanese battleship Musashi.

Now it was discovered earlier this month near the Philippines.

Now Ivan Watson has more on this incredible piece of sunken history.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

IVAN WATSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: A piece of World War II history frozen in time beneath the sea.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So here just coming into view is the chrysanthemum on the bow.

WATSON: The wreck of the Japanese battleship Musashi revealed for the first time in a remarkable webcast.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're here in the ROV control room.

WATSON: It featured live footage from a remote operated submersible filming at a depth of more than 1,000 meters beneath the sea.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're going to give you a tour of the wreck, of the Japanese battleship Musashi.

WATSON: The Japanese launched the Musashi in 1940. It was one of the largest warships of its class. On October 24, 1944, American war planes

bombed and torpedoed the Musashi at least 10 times.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: She slowly leaned over to port and eventually she basically slipped down and sunk.

WATSON: More than 1,000 crew members died and the ship disappeared for more than 70 years until this: an announcement on Twitter on March 2 by

Paul Allen, a billionaire philanthropist and one of the founders of Microsoft.

After spending more than eight years searching for the Musashi, the team aboard Allen's yacht The Octopus found the wreck deep at the bottom of

the Sibuyan Sea, their roving camera revealing amazing images of the Musashi's five meter propeller.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So here is the starboard anchor.

WATSON: As well as unexploded artillery shells and other wreckage.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That means this is a warhead shell.

WATSON: What was once a dreadnought now home to coral and other deep sea creatures.

The billionaire behind the expedition wasn't on board The Octopus when his team discovered the wreck. So Allen's crew did all the talking.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's important that we basically remind the whole world of what happened here in 1944. It was a dramatic day. It was all

these brave men went through lots of hardships and 1,023 people were lost. And that's something that both Paul Allen and us think we should never be

forgotten.

WATSON: After 70 years the whole world now gets to see the Musahi thanks to Allen and his crew aboard The Octopus.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is about the level of the number one main gun on Musashi.

WATSON: Ivan Watson, CNN, Seoul.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LU STOUT; Now, what else do geeky moguls do when they have too much spare cash? Well, Jeff Bezos, the founder of Amazon, he likes to dig out

sea treasures. In 2013, he funded that mission to pull two rocket engines out of The Atlantic. They're said to be from Apollo 11, the first rocket

that sent astronauts to the moon.

And then there's Elon Musk, the CEO of the electronic carmaker Tesla. We know he's working on a futuristic transit system that would see people

travel in vehicles inside a tube near the speed of sound. He calls it the Hyperloop.

You're watching News Stream. Still to come on the program, Twitter moves to fight so-called revenge porn. Our regular contributor Nick

Thompson joins us for a discussion on abuse on social media.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LU STOUT: I'm Kristie Lu Stout in Hong Kong. You're watching News Stream. And these are your world headlines.

Now, a powerful cyclone is hammering the South Pacific nation of Vanuatu. The category 5 story, that's the fiercest kind there is, is

hitting the capital Port Vila. Now these fierce winds and torrential rain could do immense damage to a country where a quarter of a million people

are spread across 83 islands.

Now Pakistan's highest court has ordered the release of the alleged mastermind of the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks. Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi was a

top leader of the group Lashkar-e-Taiba and he and six other suspects in Pakistan have been accused in connection with attacks on the Indian city

that left more than 160 people dead. Now the Islamabad high court ruled Lakhvi's detention is illegal. India has summoned Pakistan's high

commissioner in anger at the court's decision.

Now Britain is officially marking the end of combat operations in Afghanistan and remember those who sacrifice their lives in the war. And

the royal family, dignitaries and veterans attended a service of commemoration at St. Paul's Cathedral in London. A parade follows the

service.

Sweden has offered to question Julian Assange in London about rape allegations. Now the founder of WikiLeaks has holed up in the Ecuadoran

embassy since 2012. to avoid extradition. Swedish prosecutors previous balked at coming to Britain to question him.

Now this week on News Stream, we've been shining a spotlight on social media. And we want to tell you about a change made by Twitter this week.

Now the site updated its terms of service to address what is known as revenge porn. Its new rules say this, quote, "you may not post intimate

photos or videos that were taken or distributed without the subjects consent."

Well, let's talk more about what social media companies are doing to protect their users and also whether it's enough to police away online

abuse and harassment. Nicholas Thompson is the editor of The New Yorker.com. he joins us now live.

Nick, good to see you.

And it was just a couple of weeks ago we were talking about that internal memo by the Twitter CEO admitting how poorly Twitter was dealing

with abuse. Now Twitter has banned revenge porn. Do you think Twitter is finally taking online abuse seriously?

THOMPSON: I think they are taking online abuse seriously. I mean, I think this step is a very good step. Adding revenge porn to the list of

things that are very specifically banned in Twitter's terms of service, setting up a policy for stopping it, these are all very good steps.

It's actually going to be quite hard for Twitter to enforce, partly because it's allowed this to go on for so long and the structure of Twitter

is such a way that it's a relatively hard to regulate things like this. But absolutely, Twitter is now moving. They are doing what the (inaudible)

has said and what we talked about a few weeks ago.

LU STOUT: You know, Twitter is taking action. It has banned revenge porn on its site, but will updating its terms of service be enough to get

rid of the problem?

THOMPSON: No. It's not going to be enough to get rid of the problem. I mean -- and this is a problem that you see across all social networks.

And there are two really complicated issues, right.

So, revenge porn absolutely a horrible thing, absolutely should be banned, absolutely should be stopped in whatever ways we can. But it also

ties into two really complicated issues. The first of which is anonymity, right. What allows so much of this stuff to propagate on social media

networks is that, you know, lots of them allow people to be anonymous. On Twitter, it's very easy to set up an account which something that's not

your real name and then to start posting things.

In one respect, that's bad. It makes it much harder to police. It makes it much harder to stop. It limits some of the social constraints on

doing it.

On the other hand, you do want some opportunities for people to communicate anonymously, you know, in oppressive societies, or in places

where they want to say things that people in power don't want them to say. So that's one really hard tradeoff.

And of course, the other hard tradeoff is free speech, right. You want people to be able to say things.

So, platforms and society have to handle these two issues and they come into conflict here.

LU STOUT: Yeah. I want to get into more of this issue of free speech. We know Reddit also started banning revenge porn this week. It's

a controversial decision on this website. It's really well known for being this anything goes bulletin board. Personally, I think the announcement is

great news for women. I think it's great news for the fight against online abuse, but could this ban somehow change the tone or the culture on Reddit?

THOMPSON: Well, that's a hard question.

So Reddit does have a very freewheeling culture, and in part again because of its structure, right, where anybody can join and all sort of

votes in comments are treated exactly the same. It's sort of a pure democracy. So you can create an anonymous account, post something and you

essentially have as much power as anybody else on Reddit.

So, changing the tone there is really, really hard.

Will this do that? Yes. Reddit made a decision this fall not to really tackle revenge porn and to actually specifically say after the

Jennifer Lawrence hacks that they weren't going to do something. There then was a change in leadership at Reddit. And now they're shifting

policies.

I do think that this will help change the tone on Reddit. I do think that Reddit is starting to mature.

But again as with Twitter, these are very hard things to enforce and very deep-seated things that are a little tricky to change.

LU STOUT: And while we have Twitter and Reddit acting against online abuse, other sites flat out refuse to. I mean, you have Yik Yak, which

goes out of its way to protect the anonymity of its users. In fact, that's just the part of the appeal of the app.

But I mean, can an app be both anonymous and relatively free of abuse? I mean, can they have it both ways?

THOMPSON: Theoretically, yes. But as we've learned, right, anonymous commentary on the internet does not lead to high quality conversation in

most situations. Sometimes it does.

And all of these companies now, Yik Yak, Whisper, Secret, a lot of places that have anonymity deeply, deeply built into their structure, you

know, do it for two reasons. One, they believe that anonymous conversation is more free flowing, and two it's easier to get users if it's anonymous,

right. It's easier to get them to sign up.

So, what you often see with social media companies, social networking platforms is that at the very beginning they're totally free flowing. And

they say it's because they believe in democracy and free speech, but really it's about user acquisition. Eventually as they become more powerful and

more influential they start to step back. They start to act a little more maturely. So, Reddit and Twitter in the maturation stage, Yik Yak very

much isn't yet.

LU STOUT: Yeah, so many considerations here as platforms police themselves to be free of online harassment, online abuse. Thank you so

much for that conversation. Nick Thompson of New Yorker.com joining us live. Thank you. Until next, take care.

Now, children all around the world without their parents they'd be delighted to learn that there's going to be a sequel to the hit movie

Frozen. Now the voice of Princess Ana in the first movie of course Kristen Bell, she took to social media to announce Frozen 2, tweeting this, "dreams

really do come true." It's a bag of ice under her head like a pillow.

There's no release date set yet, but Disney will be raking in the money from the followup to what is the best selling animated movie of all

time.

Now Frozen has earned nearly $1.3 billion for Disney. And the company looks set for a stellar financial future.

We're going to see one version of Star Wars every year now. That's a big change from the past.

Now CNN's senior media correspondent Brian Stelter spoke to Maggie Lake.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BRIAN STELTER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: This was Bob Iger's dream come true to have Frozen perform as well as it did in 2013 and then keep minting

money all throughout 2014. He said last year was Disney's top five franchises. I would say at this point it's probably in the top three. And

we're just going to keep seeing it growing as time goes on.

MAGGIE LAKE, CNN MONEY: And all of this comes despite the fact that there's been some concern about box office, you know, whether all of the

different outlets eat away at what we're seeing. I guess these kind of franchises are a little bit immune from that conversation.

STELTER: And they definitely. The fact that we already know, we can circle the day on the calendar May 26, 2017 for Star Wars Episode VIII, you

know, that goes to show the power of a tent pole movie. That is the kind of movie that is only going to be in theaters no matter how much Netflix

and Amazon and other companies do their best to shrink the time between movies in theaters and movies online, movies like Star Wars are always

going to premiere in -- well, I shouldn't say always, but for our foreseeable future, premiere in theaters first.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LU STOUT: Brian Stelter there.

Now tomorrow is a day that happens once in a lifetime, that is because it is the pi day of the century. At exactly 27 minutes in 43 seconds past

nine on the 14th day of the third month this year the date and time will spell out the first 10 digits of pi in perfect order.

Now physicist Larry Shaw started International Pi Day back in 1988. And Math enthusiasts they celebrate with Pi parades and by reciting their

favorite irrational number, which is currently eight quadrillion digits long.

Now MIT is sending out its decisions on college admissions at exactly 9:26 Saturday. And of course no Pi Day is complete without eating some Pi.

You're watching News Stream. And coming up next, the state of the art vending machine, it won't eat your coins. We'll break down the tech behind

it.

(COMMERCAIL BREAK)

LU STOUT: Welcome back.

Now the internet of things offers huge potential for mobile operators and phone makers to give us more and more services right in the palm of our

hand. So what's in store for the future? Richard Quest reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

RICHARD QUEST, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Money. For centuries, cash was king, but no more.

If there's one place in Mobile World Congress where this doesn't count, it's the mobile payments section. Instead of the filthy stuff in

your pocket, here it's all about digital ways to pay.

Time for a snack.

Of course my phone is my vehicle to my stomach.

Let's go for a Coca-Cola. And I'm going to buy -- it's going to take it off this, because I'm logged in now. So I'm logged in. It's processing

the payment. Here's the man who makes it run.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hello.

QUEST: Good to see you, sir.

This is the future.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It is.

QUEST: Tell me why and how?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, I think that the first think is it's a funny way to get your snack. You can also personalize whatever you want to buy.

And you use your phone, you don't need to use any cash or any other payment system.

QUEST: What you've done here is you've put a game into front of the experience. Why bother with the game? I just want to buy a drink. Why --

what does the game give me?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think the game gives you the idea that the loyalty programs that every retailer is having also for you to have a fun

experience when you visit the shop.

QUEST: At the moment we have a multiplicity of payment mechanisms. As a solutions manufacturer, how difficult is it for you having different

systems?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So our idea of course is to be agnostic. We need to be able to cope with any payments systems. And that's what we are

doing, we are working with Google, with Apple, with any other companies.

But of course the fact is we will benefit in having a more standardized payment system that could benefit the whole industry.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LU STOUT; And that is News Stream. I'm Kristie Lu Stout. But don't go anywhere, World Sport is up next with Christina Macfarlane.

END