Tennis Australia is reinvesting in its long-term brand platform, Hits Different, by building on the momentum and deepening its impact with the launch of its second iteration for the 2025 Australian Open. The new iteration, launched with creative agency BMF , introduces a fresh take on AO memorabilia, evolving it from typical merchandise into a line fans can wear with pride throughout the year, on and off the court. Throughout 2025, Hits Different is set to create more immersive experiences, bringing fans of all kinds closer to tennis and each other. Spanning TV, OLV, OOH, social, digital display, radio, EDM, POS, merchandise, and on-site channels, AO25 invites Australians into an expanded AO experience. From kids’ days and family-friendly activities to live music and Melbourne’s best food offerings, Hits Different brings together a community where tennis is just one part of the summer celebration. “AO25 comes with a clear mandate: grow the game by inviting new audiences and making the Australian Open an event that resonates with everyone from avid fans to those attending for the first time,” Britt Wickes , Tennis Australia’s head of event marketing. “Hits Different will once again anchor the approach, reminding Australians why tennis in this country is unique and enhancing AO25’s reputation as a leader in world-class sporting experiences.” Casey Schweikert , creative director, BMF, added: “Hits Different’ has always been about more than the tennis. It captures that buzzy energy and summer culture that the AO does so well. “This year, we’re not only introducing new players, but expanding the world off the court – celebrating the music, characters, and vibes that make tennis in Australia so unique. And nothing says the AO like a few cheeky seagulls wanting to get in on the action.” CREDITS Client: Tennis Australia Creative Agency: BMF Photographer: Jo Duck Production Company: Artboxblack Production Company/Animation: BUCK Music & Sound Production: Otis Post Production: Bantam Productions Media Agency: PHD Media PR Agency: Tennis Australia Keep on top of the most important media, marketing, and agency news each day with the Mediaweek Morning Report – delivered for free every morning to your inbox.Boost for FTSE as investors pile into UK shares: But £317m inflow may be temporary reprieve By GEOFF HO Updated: 22:00 GMT, 4 December 2024 e-mail 4 View comments Britain’s beleaguered stock market enjoyed a reprieve after a three-and-a-half year exodus as investors piled £317million into equity funds last month. Figures published yesterday by funds network Calastone showed London-listed shares enjoyed inflows for the first time since May 2021. However it barely made a dent in the £25.3billion pulled out since then. And Calastone’s global head of markets, Edward Glyn, warned that it was likely to be a temporary reprieve. ‘The inflow is likely to be a hiatus rather than a break in the trend,’ he said. ‘There is no major catalyst on the horizon to prompt a wholesale resurgence of interest in the much-unloved UK stock market.’ In November, investors ploughed into equity investment funds – both UK and overseas – with overall inflows soaring to a record £3.1billion. That reversed record withdrawals in October as they tried to escape capital gains tax hikes in the Budget. Turning point? Figures published by funds network Calastone provided a rare positive for London-listed shares as the market enjoyed inflows for the first time since May 2021 Steven Fine, chief executive of broker Peel Hunt, last week voiced alarm that money was ‘draining out’ of UK funds. The trend reflects the declining market, which has struggled to attract flotations and seen an exodus of listings due to takeovers and defections to stock exchanges overseas. Yesterday, Bloomberg data showed 45 companies have delisted from London this year, up 10 per cent on last year. In comparison, latest EY figures show just ten companies either joined the London Stock Exchange or AIM, its junior market, in the first nine months of the year. RELATED ARTICLES Previous 1 Next Korean crisis in abeyance - now let's hope Trump goes easy... Gold miner backed by property tycoon Nick Candy snaps up... Share this article Share HOW THIS IS MONEY CAN HELP How to choose the best (and cheapest) stocks and shares Isa and the right DIY investing account The firms to have left this year include Virgin Money – bought by Nationwide for £2.9billion – and cybersecurity group Darktrace and Keywords Studios, taken over by private equity firms in deals worth £4.3billion and £2.1billion respectively. 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NoneArticle content Deflated by the resounding November defeat, the left now believes it can magically rebound by destroying President-elect Donald Trump’s cabinet nominees. Recommended Videos Many of Trump’s picks are well outside the usual Washington, D.C./New York political, media and corporate nexus. But that is precisely the point — to insert reformers into a bloated, incompetent and weaponized government who are not part of it. Trump’s nominee for FBI director, Kash Patel, is already drawing severe criticism. His furious enemies cannot go after his resume, since he has spent a lifetime in private, congressional and executive billets, both in investigations and intelligence. Instead, they claim he is too vindictive and does not reflect the ethos of the FBI. But what will Patel not do as the new director? He will not serially lie under oath to federal investigators as did interim FBI Director Andrew McCabe, a current Patel critic. He will not forge an FBI court affidavit, as did convicted felon and agency lawyer Kevin Clinesmith. He will not claim amnesia 245 times under congressional oath to evade embarrassing admissions as did former director James Comey. He will not partner with a foreign national to collect dirt and subvert a presidential campaign as the FBI did with Christopher Steele in 2016. He will not use the FBI to draft social media to suppress news unfavourable to a presidential candidate on the eve of an election. He would not have suppressed FBI knowledge that Hunter Biden’s laptop was genuine — to allow the lie to spread that it was “Russian disinformation” on the eve of the 2020 election. He will not raid the home of an ex-president with SWAT teams, surveil Catholics, monitor parents at school board meetings or go after pro-life peaceful protesters. Decorated combat veteran Pete Hegseth is another controversial nominee for secretary of defence. What will Hegseth likely not do? Go AWOL without notifying the president of a serious medical procedure as did current Secretary Lloyd Austin? Install race and gender criteria for promotion and mandate Diversity, Equity and Inclusion training? Insinuate falsely that cabals of white supremacists had infiltrated the military? Oversee the scramble from Kabul that saw $50 billion in U.S. military equipment abandoned to Taliban terrorists? Watch passively as a Chinese spy balloon traversed the continental United States for a week? Health and Human Services nominee Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. may earn the most Democratic hits, given his former liberal credentials. But what will RFK also not do as HHS secretary? Oversee his agencies circumventing U.S. law by transferring money to communist China to help it produce lethal gain-of-function viruses of the COVID-19 sort — in the manner of Dr. Fauci? Organize scientists to go after critics of mandatory masking and defame them? Give pharmaceutical companies near-lifetime exemptions from legal jeopardy for rushing into production mRNA vaccines not traditionally vetted and tested? Leave office to monetize his HHS expertise and thus make millions from the pharmaceutical companies? Trump’s nominee for director of national intelligence, former congressional representative and military veteran Tulsi Gabbard will soon be defamed in congressional hearings. But what has Gabbard not done? Joined “51 former intelligence authorities” to lie on the eve of the 2020 election that Hunter Biden’s laptop “had all the hallmarks” of a Russian information/disinformation operation” — to swing the election to incumbent Joe Biden? Lied under congressional oath like former DNI James Clapper, who claimed he only gave the “least untruthful answer” in congressional testimony? Encourage the FBI to monitor a presidential campaign in efforts to discredit it — like former CIA Director John Brennan, who lied not once but twice under oath? Fail to foresee the American meltdown in Kabul, the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Hamas terrorist attacks on Israel or the Houthis’ takeover of the Red Sea? We are going to hear some outrageous things in the upcoming congressional confirmation hearings. However, one thing we will not hear about is the crimes, deceptions, and utter incompetence of prior and current government grandees. The current crew prompted the sick and tired American people to demand different people. Voters want novel approaches to reform a government they not only no longer trust but also now deeply fear.iPhone 16 Pro available at Rs 1,02,500 after a Rs 16,000 discount and bank offers during Vijay Sales' Apple Days. iPhone 16 gets a Rs 9,000 price cut, now priced at Rs 66,900 with additional bank discounts. Customers can also get bank offers, EMI options and more. iPhone 16 Pro price in India: Apple’s flagship devices are rarely discounted, but customers can get massive discounts on the iPhone 16 Pro during Vijay Sales’ Apple Days sale. For the unversed, the Vijay Sales Apple Days sale is already live and will conclude on January 5. During these 5 days, customers can save big on the iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Pro along with other Apple products. So, if you are planning to buy a new flagship iPhone for yourself, this can be the best time. Check iPhone 16, and iPhone 16 Pro price deals here. iPhone 16 Pro price, offers, and discounts The iPhone 16 Pro is listed at a Rs 13,000 price cut. Customers can buy the device at Rs 1,06,900 without any bank offers on the platform. Launched at Rs 1,19,900 in India, the device is available in four different colours. Additionally, the customers can get up to Rs 4,500 bank discounts on using select bank cards including HDFC or RBL bank cards, bringing down the price to Rs 1,02,500. Customers can also trade in their old devices and get significant price reductions. Customers can opt-in for the no-cost EMI options. READ: iPhone 15 now available for under Rs 50,000 on Flipkart: Here’s how the deal works iPhone 16 price, discounts and offers Along with the iPhone 16 Pro, the customers can also save big on the iPhone 16. The vanilla trim is currently listed at Rs 70,990, a massive Rs 9,000 price cut. The customers can also get Rs 4,000 off on using select bank cards bringing down the price to Rs 66,900. However, only Ultramarine colour is available for the customers, and the rest are tagged as ‘Out of Stock’. It is worth noting that the above-mentioned deals and prices are for the base variants and the customers can choose storage options as per their requirements and avail discounts as listed on the platform. Ashish Singh is the Chief Copy Editor at Digit. Previously, he worked as a Senior Sub-Editor with Jagran English from 2022, and has been a journalist since 2020, with experience at Times Internet. Ashish specializes in Technology. In his free time, you can find him exploring new gadgets, gaming, and discovering new places. View Full Profile

NoneWorld Series vision that got Nathan Eovaldi to the Rangers is the same one that got him to re-signQatar tribune Zaki Kaf Al-Ghazal One of the earliest slogans of the 2011 revolutionaries in Syria was, “The Syrian people will not be humiliated.” They were right. In the end, it was their President, Bashar Al-Assad, who fled from Syria in the middle of the night without even notifying his loyalists. He made a quick exit knowing that all was lost. The Assad family mafia, which has been in power for 54 years, has collapsed. The president of Syria for 24 years is now apparently in Moscow. After an uprising that has lasted 13 years, the significance of this news cannot be understated. Syria is currently the only bastion of the 2011 Arab Spring with a live revolution left. Egypt, Tunisia and Bahrain fell prey to the forces of the counter-revolution, whilst Libya and Yemen were engulfed totally by chaos. Russia and Iran have essentially kept the Assad regime in place over the past few years; the former with diplomatic protection at the UN and constant air support, and the latter with its militias and proxies, including Lebanon’s Hezbollah, working on the ground to organise Assad’s forces. Russia has had access to Mediterranean ports for its navy, whilst Iran has used Syria to expand its hegemony in the region and supply arms to Hezbollah with ease. Even Israel has benefited from the Assad family, and has been advocating quietly for him to stay. The Golan Heights, occupied illegally by Israel since 1967, have been quiet since 1973 and Israel has craved the stability that the Assad regime has offered. Efforts to normalise and rehabilitate the Assad regime gained traction only 18 months ago as various Arab states rushed to readmit Bashar to the Arab League, with policymakers and pundits commenting that Assad has won and that the war is over. As mentioned on multiple occasions, though, Assad’s “victory” was both pyrrhic and short term. The swift collapse of his regime in a matter of days only lends credence to this view. The governance of Syria by Assad and his cronies has been an utter failure. Syria is recognised by experts as a failed state. The economy is moribund, and life there has come to a grinding halt for most of its citizens. Emigration and the fleeing of hundreds of thousands of working-age men who are refugees across the Middle East and Europe because they fear living under Assad’s rule has hit the regime hard. There are no opportunities for the young, and unless its citizens have access to remittances from abroad or have support from benefactors in the state or pro-government militias, then even buying bread and groceries are difficult due to rampant inflation. Syria is now also a narco-state, and it seems that the regime has collapsed under the weight of its own incompetence and brutality. Moreover, Assad’s allies have been unimpressed with him more recently.A number of senior Iranian army commanders have been killed in Syria in recent weeks and months, having been targeted by Israeli air strikes. The fact that this has been happening so often has led to questions about Assad’s officials leaking information to the occupation state. Whether intentional or a result of endemic corruption in the military, the Iranians are deeply unhappy that a regime that they have propped up for years can’t keep its benefactor’s commanders safe. Russia, meanwhile, has been unhappy about Assad’s reluctance to engage with the Astana Peace Process, which, ironically, happens to be weighted heavily in his favour. It is also worth mentioning that the issue of Syrian refugees in Turkiye has become a challenge for President Erdogan, who has been keen to find a solution and resettle them after coming under domestic pressure to do something. The Arab states which have pushed for normalisation with Assad over the past year and a half have not seen any fall in the captagon trade which his regime has fuelled, and are having to deal with the consequences. Assad has done nothing to show that he’s distanced himself from Iran which was part of the Arab states’ demand for normalising relations with Damascus again. And although Assad has claimed for years to be a part of the “Axis of resistance”, the regime has said and done nothing as Gaza burned and its people continue to face a genocide, even as thousands of Palestinian refugees are still in Assad’s prisons, and people still remember his massacres of them. The accumulation of all of these circumstances and events provided the opposition in Syria with the opportunity to strike now. The opposition forces today are a different proposition to those of the early revolutionary years, when they were loosely organised factions with little access to weapons. There seems to be a sense of unity amongst them which has been missing. Hay’at Tahrir Al-Sham (HTS), operating under the Syrian Salvation Government (SSG), and other factions — including Ahrar Al-Sham, the Sham Legion and the Nour Al–Din Al-Zenki Movement, for example — used the element of surprise to launch an attack on Aleppo which was more successful than people thought it would be. Assad’s forces, the Syrian Arab Army, are a hollow shell of their previous self; morale is low and funding has been cut for months due to economic problems. Even a last-minute attempt to raise the troops’ salaries didn’t offer any encouragement. The soldiers being called up were young men forced onto the front-line; professional troops were killed in combat years ago or had defected. These young men saw Israel as their enemy, not fellow Syrians. Moreover, there were tensions with the few Iranian units still on the ground, with Syrian soldiers feeling that they were looked down upon in their own country, which didn’t bode well. When this is factored in alongside the absence of Hezbollah due to the movement’s weakening in the war with Israel, it should have been no surprise that the Syrian regime forces collapsed as quickly as they did. The opposition forces in Idlib, meanwhile, were organising and preparing themselves over a longer period, had established a local governing system and had even managed to make and produce some of their own weapons, including the “Shaheen” drones which helped in their quick advance towards Aleppo and Damascus. When Aleppo was liberated, the Assad regime repeated the same tactics it has used over the course of the 13 year conflict, shelling the city and bombing hospitals to terrorise its citizens into submission. This time though, due to Russia’s preoccupation with Ukraine and its own exasperation with the regime, its support was much more limited, and Assad’s air strikes alone weren’t enough.He was arrogant and thought that he was his father, Hafez, who was well-known for the “hamburger trick”; he would toy with other leaders, pretending to offer something substantive (the “hamburger”), while actually just giving the bread. In the meantime, he kept playing political games, dragging his heels on the Astana Peace Process and barely pretending to engage with the Geneva Peace Process. Turkiye’s Erdogan has been trying to meet him and rekindle a normalisation process, but Assad in his arrogance refused. The US is going through a presidential transition, of course, and Biden is a lame duck who at this stage of his time in the White House won’t be making decisions of any strategic importance. Assad thought that he could play states off against each other and it seems to have blown up in his face. Given that he escaped any real punishment from the international community for repeated use of chemical weapons and years of dropping barrel bombs on hospitals and schools, it’s obvious why he became so arrogant. As opposition forces declare a Syria free from the Assad dynasty’s rule for the first time since 1971, there are a plethora of challenges to face. They will now need to build institutions and prove that they are serious about governing the country. They must be able to work with state bureaucracy and deliver basic services such as electricity and water. The early signs are encouraging, with reports from Aleppo that residents have access to electricity. The security situation is also crucial, and looting and chaos must be prevented. The fact that former Prime Minister Mohammed Ghazi Al-Jalali is supervising state bodies until a transition goes ahead to provide some continuity of service is good news. The north east region which has been ruled by the separatist Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) and other Kurdish groups will require a delicate balancing act by the new authority in Damascus. The SDF worked tacitly with Assad in the past so must be convinced to work with the new government. Furthermore, the new authority must be wary of Israel’s cross-border incursions since Assad’s abrupt departure. It is imperative for HTS to kickstart a political transition as soon as possible. Ideally, the group will be dissolved, as promised, and an independent body will govern day to day as an election date is set and a constitution is drafted. HTS is designated as a terrorist organisation by the US, the UK, the UN and others, although its leader, Abu Mohammed Al-Jolani — real name Ahmed Al-Sharaa — has stressed the fact that it has long broken from Al-Qaeda. In a recent CNN interview, he promised that Syria’s minorities will be protected and that a proper legal system will be put in place. It is too early to tell whether this is just good PR or is genuine and, if it is the latter, if he can ensure that opposition groups on the ground will listen. The Syrian people rose up in 2011 against the Assad regime to demand a system that respects human rights and the rule of law and gives the people the dignity they deserve. If any authority does not do this, they can expect resistance quickly. Ideally, the International Criminal Court will charge Assad with committing war crimes and crimes against humanity and issue an arrest warrant. There has been movement towards this in the past, but it has moved at a glacial pace. This is the justice that the Syrian people crave. The finality of seeing Assad and his cronies in the dock will not bring back the dead or disappeared, but it would go some way to easing the pain of their families. Ultimately, it must be for the Syrian people to choose their next leader and take their next steps. Russia, Iran, the US, Israel, Turkey and the Gulf states should not have a say, and any international effort should only be to help coordinate the operations of a transitional government which can facilitate free and fair elections in the coming months. The Syrian people overthrew Assad themselves; all it took was for Assad’s backers to abandon him. The sacrifices that the people have made over the past decade are astonishing, and the stream of released detainees demonstrates this, as even women and children were amongst those detained unjustly. Syria will now be what is meant to be: a republic. It is no longer one of just two states with a hereditary presidency. History tells us that empires rise and fall, and that nothing is guaranteed forever. The uprising of the Syrian people demonstrated this. Once-powerful states can crumble quicker than expected, and what was achieved in Syria can be an example for others. As we think about the aggression of Israel against the Palestinian people, we see that it’s sowing the seeds for its own demise in the future. As we learn from history, oppressive regimes set themselves up to fail, and the status quo which benefits the oppressor crumbles. (Zaki Kaf Al-Ghazal is the Media and Advocacy Officer of the Syrian Association of Yorkshire having completed an LLM in Legal and Political Theory at the University of York, he is currently a PhD candidate at the same university’s Law School.) Copy 10/12/2024 10