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☆ 'The Witcher' is ending, but season 4 won't be its last. Here's everything we know.
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-19 | by ( Ayomikun Adekaiyero | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

The streamer confirmed on Thursday that "The Witcher" season four was in production. It also said that it renewed the show for a fifth and final season, and would film both remaining seasons back-to-back. It's official, The Witcher season 4 is in production. But that's not all, we're already planning season 5, which will be the final season and bring this epic show to a fitting conclusion. pic.twitter.com/c0ilUCWYkF — The Witcher (@witchernetflix) April 18, 2024Here's what to know about the final two seasons.

Persons: Liam Hemsworth, —, Henry Cavill, Rivia, Cavill, Bel, Laurence Fishburne, It's, that's, we're Organizations: Netflix, Service, Hemsworth Locations: Riverdale

☆ A complete timeline of Henry Cavill and Natalie Viscuso's relationship
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-16 | by ( Olivia Singh | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

Read previewHenry Cavill and his girlfriend Natalie Viscuso are gearing up for a major milestone in their relationship: parenthood. October 27, 2022: Cavill and Viscuso make their red carpet debut at the world premiere of 'Enola Holmes 2'Henry Cavill and Natalie Viscuso at the world premiere of "Enola Holmes 2" at The Paris Theater on October 27, 2022, in New York. Advertisement"Partnering with Natalie Viscuso at Vertigo has been a blessing beyond words, without her we might not have found the perfect home at Amazon," he added. June 28, 2023: Viscuso supports Cavill at the season 3 premiere of 'The Witcher'Henry Cavill and Natalie Viscuso at the world premiere of season three of "The Witcher" on June 28, 2023, in London. January 24, 2024: Viscuso supports Cavill during the press tour for 'Argylle'Henry Cavill and Natalie Viscuso at the world premiere of the film "Argylle" on January 24, 2024, in London.

Persons: —, Henry Cavill, Natalie Viscuso, Clark Kent, Viscuso, Natalie, Henry, he's, Cavill, Enola Holmes, Evan Agostini, Sherlock Holmes, Millie Bobby Brown, James Cameron's, Jordan Strauss, James Cameron, Scott Garfitt, Viscuco, Viscuso's, Scott A, Matthew Vaughn's, Argylle, Matthew Vaughn, Guy Ritchie's, Gus, Phillips Organizations: Service, Vertigo Entertainment, Legendary Entertainment, Business, Daily Mail, Hollywood, Paris Theater, The Paris Theatre, Dolby Theatre, Netflix, NYC, Ungentlemanly Locations: London, New York, New York City, Los Angeles, Rivia, South Korea

☆ Henry Cavill reignites sex scenes discourse for 2024: 'They're overused these days'
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-11 | by ( Eve Crosbie | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Henry Cavill has weighed in on the debate surrounding the use of sex scenes in film and TV. I'm not a fan," Cavill said, agreeing with Vaughn, who said he "can't get my head around sex scenes." The " Witcher " actor said there are occasions where he thinks sex scenes are "beneficial" to a film's narrative, "but I think sometimes they're overused these days." "It's when you have a sense where you're going, 'Is this really necessary or is it just people with less clothing on?'" Explaining the online resistance to sex scenes, some have pointed to the fact that younger generations, millennials and Gen Zers, have different attitudes than older audiences.

Persons: Henry Cavill, Penn Badgley, Blake Lively, Jameela Jamil, —, Matthew Vaughn, Cavill, I'm, Vaughn, WxQDIHSXSz, — Lisa, He's, there's, they're, Neal McDonough, Charles Brandon, Gen Zers Organizations: Service, Netflix, UCLA

☆ CD Projekt's third-quarter profit doubles after 'Phantom Liberty' release
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-28 | by ( Adrianna Ebert | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

GDANSK, Nov 28 (Reuters) - Video games developer CD Projekt's (CDR.WA) third-quarter net profit doubled from a year earlier, it said on Tuesday, following strong demand for "Phantom Liberty", the long-awaited expansion to the company's flagship game "Cyberpunk 2077". "Phantom Liberty", the Polish company's first major new game in nearly three years, was released on Sept. 26 and had sold over 4.3 million copies within two months. The company reported a net profit of 202.9 million zlotys ($51.54 million) for the third quarter, beating the 162 million zlotys expected by analysts and up 105% from a year earlier. Revenue for the period rose 80% year on year to 442.7 million zlotys, it said. "We are very pleased with the launch of Phantom Liberty.

Persons: Adam Kicinski, Michal Nowakowski, Kicinski, Nowakowski, we're, Adrianna Ebert, Anna Pruchnicka, David Goodman, Susan Fenton, SDharon Singleton Organizations: Revenue, Liberty, Polaris, Thomson Locations: GDANSK, Polish

☆ The Novel Source for This Space Mystery? A Novel.
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-06 | by ( Samuel Horti | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Humanity’s first contact with tiny quasi-intelligent robots felt fresh and believable to the video game producer Marek Markuszewski as he devoured “The Invincible,” Stanislaw Lem’s 1964 science fiction novel, in two evenings. Its precise descriptions of force fields and antimatter cannons seemed ready-made for the screen. “This is great material for a major game,” Markuszewski said he thought at the time, while he was working for the developer CD Projekt Red. But it was a challenge Markuszewski embraced after cofounding the Polish studio Starward Industries, which has adapted Lem’s work for its debut game, The Invincible. (It releases on Monday for the PC, the PlayStation 5 and the Xbox Series X|S.)

Persons: Marek Markuszewski, ” Stanislaw Lem’s, ” Markuszewski, ”, Markuszewski, Hunt, Andrzej Sapkowski Organizations: Starward Industries, PlayStation

He said creating different ads for various audiences can be expensive and expects Amazon's AI tools to save money for advertisers. Brendan Witcher, a principal analyst at Forrester, said that Amazon's generative AI ad tool will be "good for attracting and keeping a segment of third-party sellers and brands advertising on Amazon." Other companies including Ascendly Marketing are using generative AI imaging tools that combine pictures of public figures with products. His clients are seeing a bump in sales and Google click-through rates, a trend that Amazon wants to see for its own generative AI ad tools during the holiday season. Analysts expect Amazon's advertising business to earn $14.2 billion during the holiday quarter, up from $11.56 billion a year earlier, according to LSEG estimates.

Persons: Soren Larson, Andy Jassy, Jassy, Andy Friedland, Brendan Witcher, Forrester, Elvis Presley, Marshal Davis, Friedland, Witcher, Ascendly's Davis, Davis, Arriana McLymore, Siddharth Cavale, Rod Nickel Organizations: REUTERS, Black, Amazon, Ascendly, Google, Amazon's, Thomson Locations: Melville , New York, U.S, New York City

☆ Netflix's total valuation is set to balloon by over $20 billion after the streaming giant said subscriber numbers had soared
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-19 | by ( George Glover | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

The streaming giant posted an earnings report that met Wall Street's expectations and announced a spike in subscriber numbers. Netflix also announced it would immediately raise prices for its basic and premium plans. download the app Email address Sign up By clicking “Sign Up”, you accept our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy . AdvertisementAdvertisementNetflix's stock price climbed higher in premarket trading Thursday, after the streaming giant announced a big jump in subscriber numbers. Its revenue of $8.54 billion for the three months ending September 30 was also in line with Wall Street's expectations.

Persons: —, Refinitiv, Hargreaves, Sophie Lund, Yates Organizations: Netflix, Service, Subscribers, Blockbuster, Sex Education

☆ CD Projekt's rocky road from Cyberpunk 2077 to Phantom Liberty
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-25 | by ( Adrianna Ebert | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

GDANSK, Sept 25 (Reuters) - Phantom Liberty, the long-awaited expansion to CD Projekt's (CDR.WA) flagship game Cyberpunk 2077, will debut on Tuesday on current generation consoles and PCs. In the months leading up to the release, CD Projekt's market capitalisation exceeded 40 billion zlotys ($9.28 billion). NEXT-GENERATION UPDATEIn February 2022, CD Projekt released a Cyberpunk update for next-generation consoles. PHANTOM LIBERTY RELEASE DATE ANNOUNCEDOn June 11, 2023, CD Projekt said the Phantom Liberty expansion would be released in September. UPDATE 2.0On Sept. 21, CD Projekt released a free update 2.0 to the base game, featuring various improvements to the game mechanics.

Persons: Liberty, Phantom Liberty, Adam Kicinski, Projekt, Adrianna Ebert, Milla Nissi, Anil D'Silva Organizations: Polish, OF, Projekt, Xbox, SONY, Sony, PlayStation, Netflix, North America ., Liberty, Steam, Thomson Locations: GDANSK, North America

Legacy media companies like Disney , Warner Bros. Netflix was the first streamer to report a loss in subscribers in 2022, sending its stock and other media companies spiraling. Media companies also have begun slashing content spending budgets. Yet streaming remains the focus for all of these companies as consumers rapidly cut the cord and opt for streaming. Legacy media companies scrambled to follow suit, unsure if the model actually worked.

Persons: Mario Tama, it's, Steven Schiffman, NBCUniversal, Bob Iger, Ken Solomon, Solomon, Marc DeBevoise, John Hodulik, hasn't, —, Hulu —, Peacock, Max —, HBO Max, — Ryan Murphy, Shonda, Kenya Barris, David Benioff, Weiss —, Jonathan Miller, Shonda Rhimes, Presley Ann, Patrick McMullan, Bart Simpson, esports, DeBevoise, Peter Csathy Organizations: Netflix, Getty, North, Georgetown University, Legacy, Disney, Warner Bros, Discovery, Paramount, Media, Marvel, Tennis Channel, Sinclair, Companies, UBS, CBS, HBO, Max, Hulu, Integrated Media, Trek, Universal Studios Television, Getty Images Disney, Wars, Fox, Hollywood's, Creative Media, Charter Communications, ESPN, & $, + + Locations: Los Angeles, North American, J.J, Abrams, Kenya, Beverly Hills , CA, Georgetown

☆ Poland's CD Projekt happy with pre-orders for Phantom Liberty
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-30 | by ( Adrianna Ebert | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Kicinski added that the quality assurance process is almost complete for Phantom Liberty, which is the studio's first major new game release in nearly three years. The game is the first and only expansion to Cyberpunk 2077, which came out in 2020, and the company started the marketing campaign for Phantom Liberty in June. Member of the management board Michal Nowakowski reiterated on the conference call that Phantom Liberty will be the only expansion to Cyberpunk 2077. Phantom Liberty is the last project developed on REDEngine. At the end of July, its biggest developer group, about 300 people, worked on Phantom Liberty.

Persons: Adam Kicinski, Kicinski, Michal Nowakowski, we've, We're, Adrianna Ebert, Patrycja, Tomasz Janowski, Josie Kao, Cynthia Osterman Organizations: Phantom Liberty, Liberty, Polaris, Thomson Locations: GDANSK

GDANSK, July 26 (Reuters) - Poland's biggest video games producer CD Projekt (CDR.WA) said on Wednesday it plans to lay off about 9% of personnel in its CD Projekt RED development studio, maker of Cyberpunk 2077 and "The Witcher" saga. Around 100 people will leave the company in a reduction process that is planned to conclude in the first quarter of next year. Phantom Liberty is the first and only expansion to company's Cyberpunk 2077 which is due to premier in late September. The news of redundancies within Poland's most well-known game studio came after two companies from the country's gaming sector, Ten Square Games and Huuuuge, announced they too would cut jobs. ($1 = 3.9973 zlotys)Reporting by Mateusz Rabiega; editing by Louise Heavens, Jason Neely and Conor HumphriesOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Adam Kicinski, J.P, Morgan, Mateusz, Louise Heavens, Jason Neely, Conor Humphries Organizations: Liberty, Ten, Huuuuge, Thomson Locations: GDANSK

☆ Generative AI is coming for the visual effects industry: What the technology means for the future of animation
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-24 | by ( Aaron Mok | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

Four VFX artists told Insider that AI could boost productivity and inspire creativity. Four visual-effects artists spoke to Insider about how generative AI could change their industry. Given its impressive capabilities, they believe AI has the potential to save visual-effects artists time on laborious tasks and create new forms of storytelling. Generative AI is impressing VFX artists — but it's not ready for prime timeAll four VFX artists who Insider spoke with said the quality of AI-generated animations impressed them. McCarron believes that the technology will enhance the quality of artists' work — not take over.

Persons: Runway's, Sebastien Francoeur, Francoeur, it's, Paul Franklin, Franklin, Christopher Nolan's, Mark Chavez, Jennifer Twiner McCarron, McCarron, Rick, Morty, It's, Mark Patch, Patch, Chavez, — Organizations: Adobe, Marvel Studios, Disney, International Alliance, Employees, Thunderbird Entertainment, Netflix, PBS, Marvel Locations: Hollywood

☆ ‘Secret Chef’ is just one of the delicious shows out this week
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-01 | by ( Lisa Respers France | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

Something to sip on…David Chang is an executive producer and one of the stars of "Secret Chef." Jim Fiscus/ HULUReminder that I simply adore movies and shows that celebrate food. “Guided by a mischievous animated talking hat, the chefs are tasked to perform a series of cooking challenges. With their true identities concealed, everything will be hidden except the one thing that matters most … the food.”Yes, please! “Is It Cake?” is over on Netflix, while “Secret Chef” is currently streaming on Hulu.

Persons: let’s, David Chang, Jim Fiscus, ”, –, Angela Bassett, Mike Coppola, Bassett, Tina Turner, “, Oscar, I’m, Lily, Rose Depp, Abel, Eddy Chen, Abel “, Madonna, Tesfaye, “ I’ve, ‘, Bowie, ” Tesfaye, Can’t, Kevin Baker, Henry Cavill, Cavill, Liam Hemsworth Organizations: CNN, Hulu, Netflix, Marvel Studios, HBO, Warner Bros . Locations: Hulu, Hollywood , California

☆ 'The Mother' starring Jennifer Lopez is one of Netflix's biggest hit movies of all time
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-06 | by ( Ashley Rodriguez | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

"The Mother," starring Jennifer Lopez, is one of Netflix's most watched movies of all time. The action film cracked the top 10 list during the week of May 29 after debuting earlier in the month. Jennifer Lopez's action film "The Mother" is one of Netflix's most watched movies of all time. Lopez stars in the film as an assassin on the run who comes out of hiding to protect her daughter. Here's the list of Netflix's 10 most watched English-language films of all time:

Persons: Jennifer Lopez, Jennifer Lopez's, Nick Caro, Gal Gadot, Dwayne Johnson, Ryan Reynolds, Lopez, Arnold Schwarzenegger Organizations: Netflix, Morning, Mother's

☆ Netflix and Athletic Brewing launch 'The Witcher'-themed non-alcoholic beer
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-03 | by ( Ashley R. Williams | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

Athletic Brewing Company’s collaboration with Netflix will feature limited edition, co-branded nonalcoholic beers, the brewing company announced in a news release. Athletic Brewing Company's collaboration with Netflix features three limited-edition, co-branded non-alcoholic beers. Athletic Brewing CompanyThe booze-free beer might appeal to the one-third of Americans who reported trying to consume less alcohol, according to a recent survey. Nonalcoholic beer sales were up by 33% this year, the survey found. Athletic Brewing, launched in 2018, ferments its brews to be less than 0.5% alcohol by volume – the legal limit for US-brewed nonalcoholic beer, the company said in the release.

Persons: Netflix’s “, ”, Henry Cavill, Josh Simon, ” Simon, Geralt’s Organizations: CNN, US, Athletic Brewing, Netflix, Athletic Brewing’s Locations: Rivia

☆ 30 Shows to Watch This Summer
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-01 | by ( Mike Hale | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

This summer, there’s nothing so new on television as something old. Series are emerging two years (“The Witcher”), four (“Black Mirror”), eight (“Justified: Primeval City”), 10 (“Futurama”) and 25 (“The Full Monty”) after you last had to think about them or the works from which they have been spun off. The minimum benchmark for long-term success used to be 100 episodes; now you can take a bow at 18 or 24. At least it looks as if we’ll always have “It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia.”Here are 30 shows to keep an eye out for this summer, in chronological order. Premiere dates are subject to change.

Persons: Monty ”, it’s, “, John Wilson, ”, Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan, we’ll Locations: Philadelphia

☆ CD Projekt is not for sale - CEO
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-29 | by ( Adrianna Ebert | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

GDANSK, May 29 (Reuters) - Polish games developer CD Projekt (CDR.WA) is not for sale, its CEO reiterated on Monday, following weekend rumours that the maker of "Cyberpunk 2077" could be targeted by Sony (6758.T). I can repeat what we've been saying throughout the years - CD Projekt is not for sale. CD Projekt, which has previously been rumoured to be a target for Microsoft, reported a 1% year-on-year rise in quarterly net profit, as it gears up to release an expansion to action role-playing game "Cyberpunk 2077". After two years without a major new release, CD Projekt is due to present "Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty" in Los Angeles on June 8 during the Summer Game Fest: Play Days. CD Projekt has sold over 20 million copies of Cyberpunk 2077 so far.

☆ Netflix expands its product ambitions in a clothing collab that mashes up the Lacoste crocodile with 'Bridgerton,' 'Stranger Things,' and more
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-11 | by ( Lucia Moses | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Netflix has teamed with Lacoste to create a clothing collaboration inspired by eight of its popular shows, including "Bridgerton," "Stranger Things," and "Lupin." For the pieces, Lacoste reimagined its iconic crocodile logo with elements of the Netflix shows on a collection of polos, caps, sweatshirts, and tracksuits. For "Stranger Things," a sweatshirt features the crocodile with the face of the Demogorgon, the feared creature from Season 1. Lacoste apparel inspired by "Stranger Things." NetflixThe items cost $30 to $210 and will be sold at select Lacoste stores and on Lacoste.com and Netflix.shop.

☆ With layoffs looming, you could be offered a voluntary buyout—4 things to know before taking one
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-05 | by ( Rebecca Picciotto | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

For example, after cutting 500 salaried positions in February, General Motors offered voluntary employee buyouts to the majority of its 58,000 U.S. white-collar workers. So far, about 5,000 have opted into the "Voluntary Separation Program", or VSP, the company's CFO Paul Jacobson announced on Tuesday. Buyouts can also be less voluntary and more "a precursor to layoffs," says Lindsay Witcher, a senior executive at recruiting firm Randstad RiseSmart. Regardless, these types of buyouts are less voluntary and usually mean that the employee's position is about to be eliminated. Whether the buyout is a warning sign of layoffs or purely a voluntary option, a second opinion can provide necessary clarity.

NEW YORK, April 4 (Reuters) - Hundreds of raucous Donald Trump supporters and anti-Trump protesters swarmed around a New York courthouse on Tuesday as the former president appeared for his historic arraignment on charges related to hush-money payments. Hours before Trump turned himself in on Tuesday afternoon, crowds of people whistled, shouted and waved placards in support of Trump, who has already announced his candidacy for president in 2024. Separated by barricades from the Trump crowd, counterprotesters appeared to outnumber the Trump supporters. [1/7] Supporters of former President Donald Trump demonstrate outside Manhattan Criminal Courthouse, on the day of Trump's planned court appearance after his indictment by a Manhattan grand jury, April 4, 2023. REUTERS/Eduardo Munoz 1 2 3 4 5"I would like to thank patriotic Trump supporters who are here today," Greene said through a megaphone, eliciting cheers and chants of "U-S-A!"

☆ Poland's CD Projekt posts 66% profit leap
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-30 | by ( Adrianna Ebert | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/3] A bird flies in front of the Cd Projekt logo at its headquarters in Warsaw, Poland January 21, 2020. REUTERS/Kacper PempelGDANSK, March 30 (Reuters) - Poland's biggest game developer CD Projekt (CDR.WA) on Thursday posted a 66% leap in full-year net profit to 347.1 million zlotys ($81 million), boosted by higher sales of flagship titles "The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt" and "Cyberpunk 2077". "A large portion of this profit – over 200 million zlotys – was invested in our future development projects." This year CD Projekt stands before the premiere of the highly-anticipated first and only expansion to Cyberpunk 2077 under title Phantom Liberty with marketing campaign starting in June. CD Projekt has sold over 20 million copies of Cyberpunk 2077, with Wither trilogy sales exceeding 65 million copies.

☆ Relief Efforts in Turkey, Syria Face Logistical Hurdles
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-07 | by ( Paul Berger | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +4 min

Aid groups and logistics operators worldwide are ramping up urgent relief efforts for victims of the earthquakes in Turkey and Syria but say moving supplies through the region’s devastated infrastructure will be a major challenge. Mr. Hovey said Direct Relief plans to fly supplies to airports at Istanbul in northwestern Turkey and at Adana in southeastern Turkey, close to the disaster zone. Many U.S. charities without aid operations in Syria and Turkey are now planning relief efforts, said Kathy Fulton, executive director of American Logistics Aid Network, which coordinates aid efforts among logistics operators following disasters. Aid groups are mostly focused on getting relief to Turkey and Syria by plane. He said the demand for air charters is also starting to make it harder and more expensive to secure space for aid and relief efforts in other parts of the world, such as Ukraine.

☆ Bandwidth Challenges Limit Grocery Chains’ Technology Initiatives
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-27 | by ( Isabelle Bousquette | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +5 min

Grocery chains looking to deploy new technologies are running into internet bandwidth limitations because of aging hardware and remote locations. “The more you put in the store, the more bandwidth it requires,” said Mr. Kosla. Further investment, however, might be required if the company decides to tap more cutting-edge, bandwidth-heavy tech in the future, Mr. Kosla said. There are a couple reasons grocery stores might struggle with bandwidth, one of the biggest being their locations. In other instances, Mr. Watkins said he might work with technology providers to find ways for processing data with less bandwidth.

☆ China to import 45 foreign video games, grants multiple licences to Tencent
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-28 | by ( Josh Ye | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

BEIJING, Dec 29 (Reuters) - China's video games regulator granted publishing licences to 45 foreign games for release in the country，including seven South Korean games, further lifting rigid curbs that have hammered the industry for 18 months. The approval of imported games effectively marks the end of Beijing's crackdown on the video games industry which began last August when regulators suspended the game approval process. Unlike in most other countries, video games need approval from regulators before release in China, the world's largest gaming market. Other imported games approved include CD Projekt's (CDR.WA) "Gwent: The Witcher Card Game" and Klei Entertainment's "Don't Starve". China approved 76 imported games in 2021 and 456 in 2017.

☆ Netflix's 'The Witcher: Blood Origin' is a Christmas present for superfans only
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-26 | by ( Ani Bundel | Ani Bundel Is A Cultural Critic Who Has Been Writing Regularly Since Her Work Can Also Be Found At Elite Daily | Weta'S Telly Visions | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +4 min

Sadly, “The Witcher: Blood Origin,” Netflix’s new spinoff, is a disappointment. Not that the original “Witcher” wholly depended on Cavill as its titular lead. “Blood Origin” is the first live-action spinoff, a prequel deep-dive that chronicles how witchers came to be. Unfortunately, “Blood Origin” doesn’t do much with its excellent pieces. “Blood Origin” just feels like a side quest, something that’s only worthwhile for superfans.

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