Software guru McAfee did not have heart attack: lawyer

GUATEMALA CITY (Reuters) - Software pioneer John McAfee did not have a heart attack in Guatemala as originally thought, but is suffering from stress and hypertension, his lawyer Telesforo Guerra said on Thursday. "He never had a heart attack. Nothing like that," Guerra said in Guatemala City. "I'm not a doctor. I'm just telling you what the doctors told me. He was suffering from stress, hypertension and tachycardia (an abnormally rapid heartbeat)." After being rushed to a hospital in an ambulance on Thursday, McAfee, 67, was later spirited out of the building out of sight of reporters and into a police patrol car, Guerra said. McAfee, who is fighting deportation from Guatemala, was detained on Wednesday after crossing illegally into the country from neighboring Belize. Police in Belize want to question McAfee in connection with his neighbor's murder. Earlier, Guerra said McAfee had suffered two mild heart attacks in the morning.

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No Grammy love for Justin Bieber, One Direction

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Irate fans of Justin Bieber and boy band One Direction took to social media on Thursday to voice their outrage after being snubbed by the Grammys for a chance to win the biggest honors in the music industry. Indie-pop band fun and rapper Frank Ocean led the 2013 nominations, tying with The Black Keys, Mumford & Sons, Jay-Z and Kanye West for six nods. But The Recording Academy overlooked some of the year's biggest and most commercially successful artists in Wednesday's nominations. While Bieber, 18, who won three American Music Awards in November, stayed quiet on his omission, his manager Scooter Braun took to Twitter. "Grammy board u blew it on this one. the hardest thing to do is transition, keep the train moving. The kid delivered. Huge successful album, sold out tour, and won people over. ... This time he deserved to be recognized," Braun posted in a series of tweets. Many of Bieber's 31 million Twitter fans quickly followed suit, with hashtags such as #BieberForGrammys trending on the micro-blogging service. The Canadian singer, who has never won a Grammy, in June released album "Believe," showcasing a more grown-up image. The album, which produced top 10 hits "Boyfriend" and "As Long As You Love Me," has sold more than 1.1 million copies. British boy band One Direction was also left empty-handed despite their debut album "Up All Night" having topped the Billboard 200 album chart. The quintet has performed sold-out shows across the world and won three MTV video music awards earlier this year. The Grammy Awards are voted on by members of The Recording Academy and recognize achievement in 81 categories. Lady Gaga, rapper Nicki Minaj and Korea's Psy also failed to snag any nominations. While Gaga hasn't released new music this year, focusing on her global tour, Minaj released "Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded," which topped the Billboard 200 chart and spawned singles such as "Starships." Psy may have YouTube's most watched video ever with "Gangnam Style," - over 897 million views - but he missed out on becoming the first Korean artist to receive a Grammy nod. The Grammy Awards will be handed out at a live performance show and ceremony on February 10 in Los Angeles.

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Peer-to-peer lenders welcome step towards regulation

LONDON (Reuters) - The peer-to-peer lending industry has welcomed a commitment by the British government to regulate the internet-based financiers, describing it as a "watershed moment". So-called crowdfunding providers and peer-to-peer lenders, which help businesses and individuals to raise cash from members of the public, had said that rules tailored to more traditional markets were holding back development of a vital source of finance. But from April 2014 peer-to-peer lenders, such as Zopa and Funding Circle, will be regulated by the new Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and consultation will begin early next year to decide how the new rules will work, the Treasury reiterated on Friday after an announcement in parliament last month. "We have always strongly believed that introducing proportionate regulation was necessary to enable the sector to continue to flourish," the Peer-to-Peer Finance Association said. "We are committed to working closely with the government and the Financial Conduct Authority over the coming months to build the right framework for our future." The crowdfunding industry has developed in response to reduced bank lending to small and medium-sized businesses because of tougher capital rules and greater regulatory scrutiny. ALTERNATIVE MODELS A host of alternative financing models have cropped up online, many allowing individuals to lend to, or invest in, companies with sums from as little as 10 pounds ($16). Massolution, a research and advisory firm specializing in the sector, says that 1.2 billion euros ($1.6 billion) was raised globally from crowdfunding last year. Though some websites have tried to fit their operations within existing regulation, most remain largely outside it. Part of the problem in drawing up appropriate regulation is the wide range of activities involved. Some offer debt, some equity, while others seek donations for charity or funding for creative projects in return for some non-financial reward. With little or no expected returns from the latter, the main focus on the need for regulation has been around equity crowdfunding and peer-to-peer lending. The government, keen to improve the flow of finance to small businesses to boost the sluggish economy, has also set up a working group to look at all aspects of policy on such websites. As well as making sure that individuals are aware of the inherent risk involved with putting money in start-ups, the industry wants to ensure that platforms vet businesses adequately to avoid scams. "Regulation is on its way," Susan Kramer, a Liberal Democrat member of the British parliament's upper house, said at an industry summit on Friday. "It is not a question of 'will there be regulation?', it is a question of 'will it be the right regulation?'" LOST IN THE CROWD Britain's Financial Services Authority (FSA) warned in August that inexperienced investors should be aware of the risks when using crowdfunding websites. A few days later United States securities regulators put crowdfunding at the top of their annual investment scams list. At the moment, the FSA considers authorization of equity crowdfunding schemes case by case, it said. Views differ about how to tackle these risks without stifling an increasingly important source of funding, and the matter is complicated by the varying rules already in place in different countries across Europe. Measures taken by Seedrs, the only crowdfunding website to have received FSA approval, include the requirement for investors to pass a test to show that they understand the risks. "It is hard to come up with a whole securities regulation; sometimes it does have to be a bit incremental and adaptive," Seedrs founder Jeff Lynn said. "There is no question at all that this is going to be a space that will continue to move." Some would like the operation of such platforms to be a distinct regulated activity, but others argue for smaller steps, such as a cap on the sums that people can invest or lend. Though the introduction of a separate regulated activity could still be some way off, lawyer and co-founder of peer-to-peer site Zopa, Simon Deane-Johns, said that increased engagement with government and regulators was encouraging. "Over the next year or two it should become progressively easier to set up a platform," he said. ($1 = 0.6214 British pounds) ($1 = 0.7700 euros)

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SEC wrestles with Internet age in Netflix case

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A U.S. regulatory probe of Netflix Inc over disclosures made on its chief executive's Facebook page could prove an important test of whether a rule designed to prevent leaks to analysts can translate to the social media age. The movie and TV streaming service revealed on Thursday that it may face action from the Securities and Exchange Commission if the agency determines the comments from CEO Reed Hastings violate a rule that requires information to be disclosed to investors at the same time. Hastings' Facebook page had more than 200,000 subscribers, including reporters and analysts, when he told them on July 3 that the company had hit 1 billion hours viewed in June. But the case may not hinge on whether or not his page qualifies as a public dissemination. Instead, it may come down to two other issues. One, whether the information was material to investors. And two, if it was material, whether investors knew that Hastings' Facebook page was a venue to release important company news. As evidence of materiality, the SEC could point to statements Hastings made earlier in the year highlighting milestones, including hours streamed, as metrics investors should watch. But the company contends the July 3 comments were not material. It says that the company posted a blog entry a few weeks earlier that said the company was approaching that milestone. Also, Netflix General Counsel David Hyman testified before a U.S. House of Representatives committee on June 27, and said at the beginning of his testimony that Netflix "delivers close to a billion hours of streaming movies and TV shows to its consumers every month." Such prior disclosure could hurt any SEC case. "Whether what he said is materially different from what the company has already disseminated, that may be a real challenge for the commission to maintain that position in court," said former SEC lawyer Eugene Goldman who is now with McDermott Will & Emery. But movements of the company's stock price could bolster an SEC case if the agency can prove the stock jumped on the news. Netflix attributed the jump in its stock price to a positive analyst report released the night prior to Hastings' Facebook post. The stock closed at $67.85 on July 2, and opened one percent higher the next day at $68.49, on a positive report from Citigroup. The stock closed at $72.04 on July 3, a six percent jump that would be unusual from an analyst report alone. 'LIVING IN THE REAL WORLD' The second issue of whether Hastings' Facebook page was a known source of material company news goes to the heart of whether the SEC's rules - and its interpretation of them - are outdated. SEC adopted the rule at issue, Regulation Fair Disclosure, or Reg FD, in 2000 over concerns that companies were meeting with small groups of analysts or institutional investors and disclosing material information to them. The concern was that "shortly after these types of meetings, trading would take place on the basis of such information," Goldman said. "This seems a lot different from that." The new potential action raises questions about whether the rule was designed to address disclosures like the one made by Hastings. "There's a huge divide between CEOs living in the real world and the financial industry, which lives behind regulatory walls. Reg FD is built for the old way of communicating from behind these walls," said Howard Lindzon, a hedge fund manager and founder and CEO of StockTwits, a social network for traders and investors to share real-time ideas and information about stocks. Reg FD does not delve into the use of social media for disclosing information to investors. But the SEC issued guidance on the subject in August 2008. That guidance states that companies can use websites to disclose information as long as they are a "recognized channel of distribution." To determine that threshold, the SEC lists factors companies should weigh, including whether their site is "posted and accessible" and also whether "the company has made investors and the markets aware that it will post important information" on the website. Netflix may have hurt itself on this point, if the SEC is able to prove that the information was material. Hastings acknowledged in a blog posting on Thursday that the company does not "use Facebook and other social media to get material information to investors." The SEC is likely to home in on that comment as it continues its case against the company. But Elon Musk, the CEO of Tesla Motors who has posted company-related developments on his Twitter feed, said it is hard to believe that the SEC could consider a CEO's Facebook post to be a narrow release. He noted that reporters regularly follow companies' and executives' social media posts. "To consider a press release to be a more public venue than a Facebook or Twitter account where someone is followed by hundreds of thousands of people, including the press themselves, is simply untrue," Musk said in an email.

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Exclusive: Google to replace M&A chief

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Google Inc is replacing the head of its in-house mergers and acquisitions group, David Lawee, with one of its top lawyers, according to a person familiar with the matter. Don Harrison, a high-ranking lawyer at Google, will replace Lawee as head of the Internet search company's corporate development group, which oversees mergers and acquisitions, said the source, who spoke anonymously because he was not authorized to speak publicly. Google is also planning to create a new late-stage investment group that Lawee will oversee, the source said. Google declined to comment. Lawee and Harrison could not immediately be reached for comment. One of the Internet industry's most prolific acquirers, Google has struck more than 160 deals to acquire companies and assets since 2010, according to regulatory filings. Many of Google's most popular products, including its online maps and Android mobile software, were created by companies or are based on technology that Google acquired. Harrison, Google's deputy general counsel, will head up the M&A group at a time when the company is still in the process of integrating its largest acquisition, the $12.5 billion purchase of smartphone maker Motorola Mobility, which closed in May. And he takes over at a time when the Internet search giant faces heightened regulatory scrutiny, with the U.S. Federal Trade Commission and the European Commission conducting antitrust investigations into Google's business practices. Several recent Google acquisitions have undergone months of regulatory review before receiving approval. As deputy general counsel, Harrison has been deeply involved in the company's regulatory issues and many of its acquisitions. He joined Google more than five years ago and has completed more than 70 deals at the company, according to biographical information on the Google Ventures website. Harrison is an adviser to Google Ventures, the company's nearly four-year old venture division which provides funding for start-up companies. While most of Google's acquisitions are small and mid-sized deals that do not meet the threshold for disclosure of financial terms, Google has a massive war chest of $45.7 billion in cash and marketable securities to fund acquisitions. Lawee, who took over the M&A group in 2008, has had hits and misses during his tenure. Google shut down social media company Slide one year after acquiring it for $179 million, for example. The planned late-stage investment group has not been finalized, the source said. The fund might operate separately from Google Ventures, according to the source. "Think of it as a private equity fund inside of Google," the source said. The company recently said it would increase the cash it allocates to Google Ventures to $300 million a year, up from $200 million, potentially helping it invest in later-stage financing rounds. Google finished Friday's regular trading session down 1 percent, or $6.92, at $684.21. (Reporting By Alexei Oreskovic; editing by Carol Bishopric and Jim Loney)

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Baut-baut Berkarat Diduga Penyebab Runtuhnya Terowongan di Jepang

Penyebab runtuhnya terowongan Sasago di Jepang yang menewaskan 9 orang, sedikit demi sedikit mulai terkuak. Operator terowongan tersebut menyatakan, sejumlah baut yang ada pada lempengan baja terowongan, ternyata hilang atau tidak ada pada tempatnya saat kejadian. "Ada sejumlah baut pada lempengan baja yang terlepas dari tempatnya," ujar juru bicara operator terowongan, Central Japan Expressway Company (NEXCO-Central), Ryoichi Yoshizawa, seperti dilansir CNN, Selasa (4/12/2012). Namun sayang tidak disebutkan lebih lanjut ada berapa jumlah baut yang hilang. Tidak diketahui pasti bagaimana baut-baut tersebut bisa terlepas. Yang jelas, baut-baut tersebut berfungsi sebagai pengaman pada setiap lempengan baja yang menjadi penutup atau atap terowongan. "Baut-baut yang telah berkarat atau lempengan baja yang menua bisa jadi penyebab paling mungkin dari insiden tersebut," tutur Yoshizawa. Lebih lanjut, Yoshizawa menyatakan, pemeriksaan rutin telah dilakukan terhadap terowongan yang dibuka pada 1977 silam tersebut. Namun pemeriksaan tersebut lebih kepada pemeriksaan visual, bukan pemeriksaan fisik. Hal senada juga disampaikan oleh Kepala Pusat Keamanan Ostuki pada NEXCO, Motohiro Takamisawa. Menurut Takamisawa, penyebab paling mungkin dari insiden tersebut ialah baut pengaman yang seharusnya terpasang pada lempengan baja di bagian atas terowongan. "Pada saat ini, kami menduga bahwa baut-baut pengaman di bagian atas terowongan telah longgar," ucapnya kepada wartawan di lokasi kejadian. Ditambahkan Takamizawa, baut-baut tersebut memang belum pernah diganti sejak terowongan tersebut pertama dibuka pada akhir tahun 70-an. Pasca insiden yang terjadi pada Minggu (2/12) ini, otoritas memerintahkan dilakukannya inspeksi mendadak pada 49 terowongan di Jepang, yang memiliki struktur bangunan sejenis dengan terowongan Sasago tersebut. Terdapat total 1.575 terowongan jalan raya di wilayah Jepang. Sekitar seperempat di antaranya berusia lebih dari 30 tahun, termasuk terowongan Sasago. Terowongan sepanjang 4,7 kilometer ini membentang di sepanjang Jalan Tol Chuo yang terletak sekitar 80 kilometer arah barat kota Tokyo, yang menghubungkan ibukota Jepang itu dengan kota Nagoya. Kini, terowongan tersebut ditutup sementara karena aparat setempat masih berusaha membersihkan reruntuhan terowongan. Selain itu, juga telah dilakukan pemeriksaan mendetail untuk mencegah adanya insiden serupa di kemudian hari. Pihak NEXCO sendiri tidak yakin, kapan proses pemeriksaan tersebut akan selesai.

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Tayangkan Episode 'The Simpsons' yang Dinilai Hina Tuhan, TV Turki Didenda

Lembaga pengawas media Turki menjatuhkan sanksi denda kepada sebuah televisi swasta setempat. Penyebabnya, televisi tersebut menayangkan serial kartun asal Amerika Serikat (AS) 'The Simpsons' yang dinilai bermuatan ejekan kepada Tuhan. Stasiun televisi CNBC-E dikenai sanksi denda sebesar 53 ribu lira atau setara Rp 284 juta oleh Dewan Tertinggi Radio dan Televisi (RTUK). RTUK menilai, salah satu episode 'The Simpsons' yang ditayangkan oleh CNBC-E pada 20 September lalu, berisi hinaan terhadap Tuhan. Episode tersebut berasal dari tayangan 'The Simpsons' edisi spesial Halloween yang berjudul 'Treehouse of Horrors XXII', yang ditayangkan di AS pada Oktober 2011 lalu. Dalam salah satu segmennya yang berjudul 'Dial D for Diddly', Tuhan digambarkan tengah melayani dan memberikan segelas kopi kepada setan. Dalam adegan lainnya, Tuhan digambarkan sebagai karakter yang mendorong orang lain untuk bunuh diri dalam nama-Nya. Salah satu karakter yang bernama Ned Flanders, yang taat beribadah, dihasut untuk melakukan penyerangan massal setelah mendengar suara dari Kitab Suci yang dipikirnya sebagai suara Tuhan. Tidak hanya itu, RTUK juga mempermasalahkan salah satu adegan yang menunjukkan salinan Kitab Suci dibakar dan Tuhan digambarkan menghasut anak-anak muda untuk mengkonsumsi alkohol. Demikian seperti diberitakan surat kabar setempat, Hurriyet, dan dilansir AFP, Selasa (4/12/2012). "Salah satu karakter memanfaatkan karakter lainnya yang religius dengan menghasutnya untuk melakukan pembunuhan. Kitab suci secara terang-terangan dibakar di salah satu adegan dan Tuhan dan setan ditunjukkan dalam wujud manusia," demikian bunyi laporan RTUK. Serial kartun 'The Simpsons' dikenal sebagai serial komedi yang bertahan lama di AS. Kartun ini pertama kali ditayangkan pada tahun 1989 dan hingga saat ini sudah berjalan lebih dari 500 episode.

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Kate Middleton Hamil, Ratu Elizabeth & Keluarga Kerajaan Sambut Gembira

Kate Middleton, yang merupakan istri putra mahkota Inggris, Pangeran William, kini tengah mengandung seorang bayi. Berita bahagia ini menggemparkan Inggris dan disambut bahagia oleh keluarga kerajaan, terutama Ratu Elizabeth II. Seperti dilansir AFP, Selasa (4/12/2012), Kate dilaporkan tengah berada di rumah sakit karena mengalami mual-mual atau biasa disebut morning sickness. Pernyataan ini dirilis oleh Istana St James yang menjadi kediaman pasangan ini. "Yang Mulia Duke dan Duchess of Cambridge sangat berbahagia untuk mengumumkan bahwa Duchess of Cambridge tengah mengandung seorang bayi," demikian pernyataan Istana St James. Duke dan Duchess of Cambridge adalah gelar dari Pangeran William dan Kate. Pengumuman ini seolah menjawab rumor yang selama beberapa minggu terakhir beredar di kalangan warga Inggris soal kehamilan Kate. Menurut Istana St James, baik Kate maupun William sama-sama baru saja menyadari kehamilan Kate. Kehamilan Kate ini disebut-sebut masih di bawah usia 12 minggu dan pengumuman ini dilakukan berdasarkan kondisi kesehatan Kate. Lebih lanjut, Istana St James menjelaskan, bahwa Kate dilarikan ke King Edward VII Hospital yang ada di London pusat pada Senin (3/12) sore waktu setempat. Saat itu, Kate dinyatakan mengalami kondisi yang disebut 'hyperemesis gravidarum', yakni semacam mual-mual pagi hari yang sangat akut. Kondisi ini memerlukan perawatan ekstra yang disertai penambahan cairan tubuh dan nutrisi. "Melihat kehamilan yang masih pada masa-masa awal, Yang Mulia (Kate) diharapkan untuk tetap tinggal di rumah sakit selama beberapa hari ke depan dan membutuhkan masa istirahat panjang setelah itu," imbuh pernyataan Istana St James. Kabar kehamilan Kate ini mendapat sambutan hangat dari Ratu Elizabeth II dan suaminya Pangeran Philip. Demikian halnya dengan Pangeran Charles, ayah William, dan istrinya Camilla, serta Pangeran Harry. "Kedua keluarga sangat berbahagia dengan berita ini," terang Istana St James. Berita bahagia ini juga mendapat sambutan baik dari Perdana Menteri Inggris David Cameron. Bahkan PM Cameron mendoakan William dan Kate akan menjadi orangtua yang luar biasa bagi anak mereka. Warga Inggris pun, lanjut Cameron, ikut merayakan kabar gembira ini.

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Rawat Bayi Sahabatnya yang Gay, Putri Norwegia Menyamar di India

Putri mahkota Norwegia Mette-Marit terbang ke India dan sengaja menyamar menjadi orang biasa selama beberapa bulan di sana. Hal ini dilakukannya demi merawat sepasang bayi kembar, anak angkat sahabatnya yang gay. Kedua sahabat laki-lakinya yang juga berasal dari Norwegia tersebut, tengah mengalami masalah visa sehingga tidak bisa pergi ke India tepat waktu untuk menjemput anak angkat mereka. Pasangan gay tersebut memang menggunakan seorang ibu pengganti yang berasal dari India. Mette-Marit datang ke New Delhi, India dengan menggunakan uang pribadinya pada Oktober lalu. Selama merawat dan menemani bayi sahabatnya di sebuah klinik di New Delhi, wanita 39 tahun ini sama sekali tidak dikenali oleh warga setempat. Incognito atau penyamarannya berhasil. Sejumlah staf dan perawat di klinik tersebut mengira Mette-Marit yang berambut pirang ini sebagai seorang pengasuh bayi. Putri Mette-Marit awalnya merupakan warga biasa dan seorang ibu tunggal hingga akhirnya dia menikah dengan menikah dengan suaminya, Pangeran Haakon pada tahun 2001. Diketahui bahwa penggunaan ibu pengganti dilarang dan tergolong tindakan ilegal di Norwegia. "Terkadang dalam hidup, kita mendapati diri kita dalam situasi yang sulit tanpa ada solusi yang baik. Dalam situasi seperti itu, Anda harus membuat keputusan sulit bahkan jika sangat berisiko," ujar Mette-Marit seperti dikutip situs Kerajaan Norwegia. "Perdebatan yang sangat penting masih berlangsung di masyarakat tentang anak-anak yang dilahirkan oleh ibu pengganti. Menurut pandangan saya, ini bukan masalah perdebatan. Bagi saya, ini tentang membantu dua bayi yang baru lahir, yang sendirian di dunia ini," imbuhnya. Diketahui bahwa penggunaan ibu pengganti dilarang di Norwegia yang notabene merupakan negara liberal. Baru-baru ini, mantan Kepala Kepolisian Nasional Nowegia Oesystein memiliki anak dengan kekasih prianya melalui seorang ibu pengganti di Amerika Serikat (AS).

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Obama Kirim Ucapan Selamat untuk Kerajaan Inggris Atas Kehamilan Kate

Berita bahagia keluarga kerajaan Inggris telah sampai di telinga Presiden Amerika Serikat (AS) Barack Obama. Obama mengucapkan selamat bagi pasangan Pangeran William dan Kate Middleton atas kehamilan anak pertama mereka yang menjadi ahli waris tahta Kerajaan Inggris selanjutnya. "Atas nama semua orang yang ada di Gedung Putih, terutama Presiden dan Ibu Negara, kami menyampaikan ucapan selamat kami bagi Duke dan Duchess of Cambridge atas berita gembira pagi ini di London, yakni keduanya tengah menanti anak pertama mereka," ujar juru bicara Gedung Putih, Jay Carney, seperti dilansir AFP, Selasa (4/12/2012). Terakhir kali Presiden Obama dan istri, Michelle Obama bertemu dengan pasangan yang dijuluki 'royal couple' tersebut ketika berkunjung ke Inggris, tahun 2011 lalu. Saat itu, keduanya masih berstatus pengantin baru. "Saya tahu bagaimana perasaan mereka (Obama dan Michelle), memiliki anak pertama merupakan hal luar yang pernah terjadi dalam hidup mereka, jadi saya yakin bahwa hal yang sama juga dirasakan oleh Duke dan Duchess of Cambridge," tutur Carney. Pihak Kerajaan Inggris memberikan pengumuman gembira, yakni istri Pangeran William, Kate Middleton tengah mengandung anak pertama. Pengumuman ini seolah menjawab rumor yang selama beberapa minggu terakhir beredar di kalangan warga Inggris soal kehamilan Kate. Kehamilan Kate ini disebut-sebut masih di bawah usia 12 minggu dan pengumuman ini dilakukan berdasarkan kondisi kesehatan Kate. Kate dilarikan ke King Edward VII Hospital yang ada di London pusat pada Senin (3/12) sore waktu setempat, karena mengalami kondisi yang disebut 'hyperemesis gravidarum', yakni semacam mual-mual pagi hari yang sangat akut. Kondisi ini memerlukan perawatan ekstra yang disertai penambahan cairan tubuh dan nutrisi. Kabar kehamilan Kate ini mendapat sambutan hangat dari Ratu Elizabeth II dan suaminya Pangeran Philip. Demikian halnya dengan Pangeran Charles, ayah William, dan istrinya Camilla, serta Pangeran Harry.

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