DIRS.INFO The most relevant business & tech news

☆ Debate heats up as Singapore prime minister says exclusive Taylor Swift deal isn't 'unfriendly'
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-05 | by ( Monica Pitrelli | Marylou Costa | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said Tuesday that a closed-door deal for Taylor Swift to perform in the city-state ensured she would not perform in other Southeast Asian countries during her Eras tour. The statement is the first confirmation from the city-state that the agreement for Swift to perform in Singapore contained exclusivity terms preventing her from performing in other countries. He also did not reveal the size of the grant to Swift, but stated the amount is "not anywhere as high as speculated." During her first three concerts in Singapore, Swift asked her audience to applaud — first the locals, then those who had traveled from overseas to come to the show. Edwin Tong Singapore Minister for Culture, Community and YouthSome liken the deal to how cities vie to host major sports events, such as the Olympics, the Super Bowl and the World Cup.

Persons: Lee Hsien Loong, Taylor Swift, Swift, Edwin Tong, Srettha Thavisin, Joey Salceda, Lee, Ashok Kumar, —, Selena Oh, de Boer, Irene Hoe, — haven't Organizations: Singapore, Reuters, Thai, Swift's, Philippine, Getty, Edwin Tong Singapore Minister, Culture ,, Super Bowl Locations: Singapore, Southeast Asia, Melbourne, Bangkok, ASEAN, Tokyo, Asia, Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, Asia — Tokyo, Shanghai, Hong Kong, Philippines, Cambodia, what's, Edwin Tong Singapore

☆ Eras Tour: Singapore defends Taylor Swift’s exclusive Southeast Asia stop after neighbors cry foul
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-05 | by ( Kathleen Magramo | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

CNN —Singapore is drawing fans from all over Southeast Asia and beyond to Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour, much to the annoyance of the city-state’s regional neighbors. “[Our] agencies negotiated an arrangement with her to come to Singapore and perform and to make Singapore her only stop in Southeast Asia,” Lee said at a press conference in Melbourne while on a state visit to Australia. I don’t see that as being unfriendly.”“If we had not made such an arrangement, would she have come to more places in Southeast Asia? Southeast Asia fans dig deep to see SwiftThe Eras Tour is a multi-continent extravaganza that surged to become the highest-grossing tour of all time – and Swift is making Singapore a lot of money. I never really spent big like six-digit (Philippine peso) amounts for someone else, just Taylor Swift,” Suizo said.

Persons: Taylor, Swift, Joey Salceda, Lee Hsien Loong, “, ” Lee, Edward Tong, ”, Srettha Thavisin, Taylor Swift, hasn’t, Edmund Ong, Yun Liu, Errol De Asis, Gilliane, Christel Kaye Kuan, Yedda Mendoza, ” Suizo, it’s, Granada, That’s Organizations: CNN, Southeast, Singapore –, ”, Singapore, Coldplay, World Bank Locations: Singapore, Southeast Asia, Melbourne, Australia, Bangkok, Thailand, Philippines, Asia, Maybank, ASEAN, Gilliane Granada, China, Granada

☆ Taylor Swift is making Singapore a mountain of money, and some of the country's neighbors are salty about it
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-04 | by ( Huileng Tan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Edwin Tong, Singapore's culture minister, told local outlet Mothership on February 28 that the amount of grant given "is not what is being speculated online." As Tong, the Singapore culture minister, told Mothership, the city-state is looking "beyond just the economic impact" of Swiftonimics. Economists estimate that Swift's concerts in Singapore could contribute up to 500 million Singapore dollars, or $372 million, in tourist receipts. AdvertisementIt's a different story for spending on experiences — and it's heightened because Singapore is Swift's only stop in Southeast Asia. Mann said the people who have money to pay for flight tickets, Swift's concert tickets, and a hotel are likely to keep spending at other tourist spots.

Persons: —, Taylor Swift, Srettha, Edwin Tong, Swift, it's, Yun Liu, Tong, Kevin Cheong, David Mann, Mann, Coldplay, Si Ying Toh, Cheong, Joey Salceda, Sandiaga Salahuddin Uno Organizations: Service, Business, HSBC, Asia Pacific, Mastercard, Nomura, Philippine Star, Bloomberg, Vegas Locations: Singapore, Southeast Asia, British, Thailand, Bangkok, Indonesia, Sands

☆ Singapore brokered a deal with Taylor Swift, so she wouldn't take the Eras Tour to other Southeast Asian countries. Now, a Philippines lawmaker is calling it out.
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-02 | by ( Eve Crosbie | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Read previewThere's a feud between Singapore and neighboring government officials — and it's all down to Taylor Swift. "Some $3 million in grants were allegedly given by the Singapore government to AEG to host the concert in Singapore. AdvertisementFans of US singer Taylor Swift arrive for the first of the pop star's six sold-out Eras Tour concerts at the National Stadium in Singapore on March 2, 2024. Taylor Swift performs at the National Stadium on March 2, 2024 in Singapore. He claimed he was told the Singapore government offered $2 million to $3 million per show in exchange for exclusivity.

Persons: —, Taylor Swift, Joey Salceda, Swift, Salceda, Rosland Rahman, Ashok Kumar, Srettha Thavisin, Angel Zhong Organizations: Service, Business, Philippines, Department of Foreign Affairs, Singapore, AEG, The Straits Times, Getty, GMA Network, Association of South East Asian Nations, Sky News, BBC News, CNA, Finance, RMIT University, Forbes Locations: Singapore, Philippines, Southeast Asia, Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Vietnam, Bangkok, Thailand

☆ The Man Behind 250 Masks
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-06 | by ( Julia Halperin | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

As a child making home videos, Marcel Dzama, 49, asked his father and sister to cover their faces with masks because they couldn’t stop grinning. The collection: Handmade masks, in materials ranging from paper to wood to cloth. I said, ‘A mask.’ It was made out of ceramic and had a happy face on one side and a sad face on the other. I’ve been sending her masks because she likes to paint them.”Most expensive: “Probably these 40 wooden masks from Guadalajara [in Mexico]. José inherited his mask collection, but he couldn’t look at it because he felt too sad.

Persons: Marcel Dzama, “, Lorca, ”, Federico García Lorca, Mamma Andersson, I’ve, José, Salceda Organizations: Performa, Arts Locations: Canadian, Spanish, Hawaii, Winnipeg, Brooklyn, Guadalajara, Mexico

☆ ‘Love the Philippines:’ Ad agency apologizes for using footage of other countries in tourism video
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-03 | by ( Tara Subramaniam | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN —A Filipino ad agency has come under fire for using footage of other countries in a promotional video for the country’s new tourism campaign, “Love the Philippines.”Days after the campaign launched on June 27, the Department of Tourism (DOT) said it was investigating allegations that the video contained several shots of countries other than the Philippines. On Sunday, DDB Philippines issued a statement “profusely” apologizing for the “highly inappropriate” use of foreign stock footage in the video, which has since been taken down. The use of foreign stock footage in a campaign promoting the Philippines is highly inappropriate, and contradictory to the DOT’s objectives,” DDB Philippines said, according to the CNN Philippines report. Last year, tourism represented 17% of the country’s GDP, the World Travel and Tourism Council reported in June, according to CNN Philippines. Otherwise, I have a duty to ask questions,” Salceda said, according to CNN Philippines.

Persons: “, ”, Ina Zara, Loyola, ” Zara, Christina Frasco, Frasco, it’s, Joey Salceda, ” Salceda Organizations: CNN, Department of Tourism, Philippines, DDB Philippines, CNN Philippines, Tourism Council Locations: Filipino, Philippines, CNN Philippines, Philippine

☆ Philippines: Onions so expensive they're being smuggled into the country
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-10 | by ( Kathleen Magramo | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

The price surge comes after a spate of super typhoons hit the Philippines last year, damaging tens of billions of pesos worth of crops. Ombudsman Samuel Martires was quoted this week by CNN affiliate CNN Philippines as saying he was looking into the possibility of price manipulation. Smuggling onionsOnions have become such a hot commodity that they’re being smuggled into the country. Two days earlier, $364,000 worth of red onions from China found hidden in pastry boxes were also seized by Customs. President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said he hoped to find a way to sell the smuggled onions to “reduce the supply problems” the country was facing.

Search resuls for: "Salceda"

7 mentions found