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Pope Benedict Calls For Renewed Faith In Last Public Address; Interview with BlackBerry 10's Lead Designer; Interview with Foursquare CEO; Luxor Hot Air Balloon Tragedy

Aired February 27, 2013 - 08:00:00   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 and welcome to News Stream where news and technology meet.

Now we are live at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona. The mobile industry's biggest event of the year. And we're speaking to the leading names in the business and checking out the tablets, the smartphones, and software that we'll all be using in the year's ahead.

But let's begin with the day's big news stories.

Now Benedict XVI bids farewell to the Catholic faithful on his penultimate day as pope. We are live at the Vatican.

And remembering the victims. Egyptians mark a fatal hot air balloon crash in the tourist hotspot of Luxor.

And it has changed its name, but can BlackBerry turn around its fortunes? I'll ask one of the company's top executives.

Now Pope Benedict XVI has held his last general audience. Thousands of people crammed into St. Peter's Square and the surrounding area to bid him a found farewell. After a quick tour of the square in the now famous Pope Mobile, he made his final public address.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BENEDICT XVI: My heart is filled with thanksgiving to (inaudible) of his church and her growth in present life (ph). And I wish all of you with joy and gratitude. During this year of (inaudible) we have been called to renew our (inaudible) trust and the lost presence in our lives. And (inaudible) church. And (inaudible) feeling love and guidance eight years since I accepting this call to serve as the successor of Peter.

I was a deeply grateful for the understanding, support and prayers, of so many of you not only here in the room, but also (inaudible).

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LU STOUT: Now the pope's address, it was greeted with cheering and applause by a huge crowd. On Thursday, he'll meet with cardinals before stepping down in the evening. It is the first time a pope has resigned in six centuries.

Now Ben Wedeman was among the crowd in St. Peter's Square and he joins me now live from Vatican City. And Ben, tens of thousands of people were there witnessing this final farewell there in the Vatican City. Can you describe the scene for us?

BEN WEDEMAN, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: What we saw is actually a huge crowd here in the Vatican -- in St. Peter's Square behind me. The Italian authorities had put on extra buses and trains to handle the expected crowd. And in fact apparently some Italian schools told the students that they would not be punished if they skipped the day to come here. I did speak to some American students who were here skipping class today from a university here, saying that they wanted to come to attend this historic occasion.

We saw, Kristie, people from all over the world who had come to essentially bid farewell to Pope Benedict. Of course tomorrow evening at 8:00 pm local time he will be stepping down.

We also saw many, for instance, members of the church. We saw some nuns who were right on the railing here, staying here for hours and hours, at some points crying during the ceremony and other times praying, so a very sort of sad, solemn day here in St. Peter's Square -- Kristie.

LU STOUT: Yeah, people that wanted to say goodbye and also be a part of history. And the sight of seeing a living pope saying farewell, remarkable moment.

What is the thinking about the future, though? I mean, were those among the crowd, were they hopeful, were they concerned about the future of the church?

WEDEMAN: Well, I think today was an occasion really just to say goodbye to Pope Benedict. But of course people are concerned, wondering what sort of pope is coming next. We do know that on the first of March the college of cardinals will be meeting, that is a group not only of the cardinals who will participate in the conclave that's 115 cardinals, but those cardinals who are above the age of 80 as well, because in the conclave no cardinal beyond 80 can participate.

Now there's lots of speculation as to who might win this election in the conclave, but at this point, as I said, the real focus of today was on the accomplishments, the challenges that Pope Benedict XVI had to face -- Kristie.

LU STOUT: Of course. And what's next for Benedict XVI? What will be his life in retirement?

WEDEMAN: I'm sorry, Kristie. I didn't catch that question.

LU STOUT: I wanted to ask you -- what's next for Benedict XVI?

WEDEMAN: Well, we do know that tomorrow he will be meeting with the cardinals and those who worked most closely with him. At 5:00 pm tomorrow evening he will board a helicopter and a helipad just behind the basilica behind me and he will fly south of Rome to Castel Gandolfo which is the summer residence of the pope. He'll stay there for two or three months until his final residents which is on a hill within the Vatican City. There, he will be staying. And of course we know he will be a pope emeritus, that is the title the Vatican said he will take. He will still wear the white robe of the pope. It's not clear whether his seal will be destroyed as is traditional in the case of, for instance, when a pope dies.

He says he will devote himself to prayer and contemplation, writing, and studying.

Now it's not clear whether he'll serve as an adviser to his successor or he will simply, as I said, just devote himself to prayer and study -- Kristie.

LU STOUT: All right. Ben Wedeman, joining us live from Vatican City. Thank you very much indeed for that report.

Now today's events, they were centered at the Vatican, but people around the world are paying their respects to the outgoing pope. This was a scene in the Philippines capital Manila on Tuesday evening where Catholics attended a special thanksgiving mass. Now according to the national statistics office, about 80 to 85 percent of the population is Roman Catholic.

Now the Vatican may be preparing for a new era, but some traditions have remained for centuries. Now the election of a new pope, for example, is done by what is called the conclave. Now that is an assembly of cardinals who work in secrecy. They are locked inside the iconic Sistine Chapel.

Now Becky Anderson explains the process.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ANDERSON: This is St. Peter's square in the state of Vatican City, the spiritual and governing seat of the Roman Catholic Church. And it's here that tens of thousands of pilgrims gather to await the election of a new pope. And it's here, behind me, just in the corner in the Vatican's Sistine Chapel that the new pontiff is chosen.

Well, the Sistine Chapel was designed to be the papal chapel. It's one of the world's most famous galleries of Biblical art, its ceiling painted by Michelangelo. And it's here that the Conclaves of Cardinals is held.

One hundred and fifteen cardinals are expected to gather to invoke the Holy Spirit for assistance before electing a pope by secret ballot. The cardinals behind closed doors, cut off from the outside world, will chose a leader.

During the period of conclave, the cardinals will be staying in accommodation just over there. They'll be bused in. And on the first day of conclave, eligible cardinals may hold a vote. If there is no result, on subsequent days, they'll vote twice in the morning and twice in the afternoon until someone receives a vote of two-thirds plus one.

Since the cardinals meet in isolation, the only way the public knows about proceedings is one of the most famous traditions of the papal succession ritual: the appearance of smoke from a chimney over there at the conclave room.

The ballots are burned after each vote. Black smoke from that chimney indicates a failed ballot. White smoke means a new pope has been elected.

Shortly after the decision has been signaled, the new pope will appear in front of a throng of onlookers and give his first apostolic blessing from the window over there.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LU STOUT: Now there has been a deadly shooting at a factory near the Swiss city of Lucerne. Local media report that a gunman killed two people before killing himself. Now seven people are reported to be seriously wounded. At least four of them were air lifted to the hospital. Now the shooting happened at a wood manufacturing plant. And police say they have secured the premises and have cordoned off a large area around the factory.

Now firefighters are battling a major blaze at a hotel in central London. Now the fifth floor of the royal court apartments was in the Bayswater area is on fire. Now ten fire engines and more than 70 firefighters are there on the scene. And the London fire brigade says it doesn't yet know what caused the fire to break out. And there are no casualties.

Now you're watching News Stream live from the Mobile World Congress here in Barcelona. And coming up next, Egyptians remember the victims of a tragic accident aboard a hot air balloon. We'll have a live report from the city of Luxor.

And trying to catch up with Apple and Samsung. Now one of BlackBerry's top executives tells us how his company plans to fight for a place alongside the giants of the mobile industry. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LU STOUT: You're watching News Stream live from the Mobile World Congress here in Barcelona. This is the place to be if you are anyone in the mobile tech industry.

Already this week, we've spoken to executives from Google, Android, Microsoft and Nokia. In just a few moments we'll speak to the designer of the BlackBerry 10 operating system.

Again, all week we've been looking at each of the major mobile operating systems: we talked to Google about Android. We've talked to Microsoft about Windows Phone, today we're looking at the BlackBerry. And you probably know the story by now, BlackBerries were once a business icon, but take a look at how tough times have been. Now the research from IDC says less than 5 percent of the phones shipped in 2012 were BlackBerries.

Now BlackBerry has high hopes for the year ahead. The company has unveiled new handsets and a brand new operating system BlackBerry 10.

Let's get more now on BlackBerry and their new OS from the man in charge of it. I'm joined now by Vivek Bhardwaj, he's BlackBerry's head of software portfolio.

Thank you for joining me here.

VIVEK BHARDWAJ, HEAD OF SOFTWARE PORFOLIO, BLACKBERRY: You're welcome. My pleasure.

LU STOUT: ...at the Mobile World Congress.

It has been a rough couple of years up to this moment from BlackBerry. You know, the delay of the rollout of BlackBerry 10, losing marketshare. What's the mood inside the company and your plan to turn it around?

BHARDWAJ: So obviously we've launched on January 30 BlackBerry 10. Super excited. The morale has really lifted, a whole team is really energized. Not only have we been launching across various markets around the world, but we're now starting to build momentum. So customers are really getting to experience the device, they're looking at the brand new user experience, and even features like BBM, which has been you know the heart and soul of BlackBerry has really come to shine on the new platform.

LU STOUT: You're the guy behind the OS. You're behind the operating system of BlackBerry 10, so what did you design into it that's distinctive and different for the 10?

BHARDWAJ: So first is definitely the user experience. When you look at a gesture based design we have, you're able to navigate the entire UI with a single thumb. It's really powerful.

But not only that, the hardware design itself is ergonomic. It feels great. And when you combine the two together, it really does stand out.

LU STOUT: Now there is no keypad on it, it's all touchscreen. And you do have your hardcore base of corporate users who really like the original BlackBerry thumbing -- you know, the QWERTY keyboard, that's gone. Are they warming up to the BlackBerry 10?

BHARDWAJ: So, actually what we've done with the keyboard is deliver a BlackBerry keyboard. So when you look at the BlackBerry Z10, you've got a fantastic touchscreen keyboard. But we've also got the BlackBerry Q10 that we announced, which will be available shortly afterwards, which is for those diehard BlackBerry lovers, a physical keyboard as well.

LU STOUT: OK, so there is that option...

BHARDWAJ: Absolutely.

LU STOUT: Now we have to talk about apps, because you do have an app store, but there are a number of really popular apps that are not there. I mean, for example Spotify isn't there, Google Maps, you know, that's not there either. And so when you look at your rivals and their offerings, how are you going to catch up app wise?

BHARDWAJ: So I think first off we build a really solid foundation for a developer ecosystem. We've been running a series of jam (ph) world tours all of last year, really started to build momentum with developers.

Secondly, at launch we announced some fantastic partners who are bringing applications, so whether it be Skype, Amazon Kindle, or even WhatsApp who are actually launching in just a couple of weeks. You're going to start to see some fantastic applications come to our platform.

LU STOUT: You know, it's interesting to hear that WhatsApp is going to be offered on your platform, because that's a direct competitor to BlackBerry Messanger, which has been very popular. But you have a number of rivals. I mean, there's WhatsApp, there's also Facebook Messenger, how do you plan to keep ahead of the pack?

BHARDWAJ: So if you look at the innovation we've done with BBM, it's always been about real-time chat. On BlackBerry 10 we take you to real- time engagement. So we've now brought in video calling and a brand new feature called spring share, where you can actually share your content through the call device to device, and it's a fantastic experience.

LU STOUT: You know, earlier this week I talked to the CEO of Nokia, right. And basically it's a battle for bronze going on in the handset market for smartphones, it's between BlackBerry and between Nokia. He said he wants to win gold. What about BlackBerry, what's your feeling?

BHARDWAJ: So, you know, we know we're in third place now and we're going to continue to try to win. We're here to make sure we can climb and, you know, we're delivering a premium experience, fantastic hardware, and we're really leveraging our existing base as well, almost 80 million subscribers. So we're really here to win this.

LU STOUT: And I have to ask you about Alicia Keys, the pop star, she is gorgeous, she is your what, global creative director?

BHARDWAJ: Yes.

LU STOUT: Yeah, that was announced during the time of BlackBerry 10. That was announce. Why was she appointed global creative director? And is she really hands on with the company? What is her role?

BHARDWAJ: So, with Alicia Keys, first thing, you know, her creativity, her entrepreneurship, her ambition to be successful really merits alongside the BlackBerry brand values as well. So for that, it's a great partnership.

When we look beyond that, actually there's a number of things that she's doing already around her Keep Moving project where she's really starting to use BlackBerry 10 as an enabling technology to bring fans closer to her content. So they can, you know, share photos. And she's really going to start creating unique experiences throughout her world tour, which we're also sponsoring as well.

LU STOUT: All right. And finally one more question for you, and this is a question I've been asking all the mobile executives here at the congress, what's the next big thing? What is the next big trend in mobile computing?

BHARDWAJ: For us, it is -- it's mobile computing itself. We believe that the power now of the smartphone is that of what a computer is today. And we're going to leverage our platform that we've built to really take mobile computing to a whole other level. You're going to see engagement with, you know, automotive and so many other areas of technology around you where this really, truly does become the mobile computing in the palm of your hand.

LU STOUT: Well, Vivek Bhardwaj, good luck to you, good luck to BlackBerry. Thank you so much for joining me.

BHARDWAJ: Thank you very much, Kristie.

LU STOUT: All right. And you'll notice that there is one name missing when we run through the big mobile operating systems, and that's Apple. Apple, they are not here at the Mobile World Congress, in fact, they are never at shows like this. But tomorrow we will have one other player to talk about: Firefox. Take a look at their new mobile operating system on Thursdays News Stream.

Now still to come on the program, we will have a live report from Luxor with the latest on that deadly crash of a hot air balloon in Egypt. This is CNN.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LU STOUT: Welcome back.

Now officials from Iran will meet with world powers next month for expert level talks on the country's controversial nuclear program. Those talks are set for Istanbul on March 18. And the announcement came as leaders from Iran and the so-called P5+1 nations wrapped up talks in Kazakhstan on Wednesday. International officials say that they're willing to ease sanctions on Iran if the country scales back its nuclear agenda. Now the talks ended with no sign of a breakthrough. Full negotiations are set to resume in April.

And we will have much more on this story in the next hour of CNN. In fact, Iran's top nuclear negotiator, Said Jalili, will be speaking with our chief international correspondent Christiane Amanpour in the next hour. So, stay tuned for that.

Now turning now to Egypt where a march is planned in the city of Luxor to remember the 19 people killed in a hot air balloon accident on Tuesday. Now this video, it was shot by a tourist riding in another balloon. You can see smoke pouring out from the basket after an explosion on board. The balloon collapses. It then plummets to the ground. And just before it crashes, you can see the fire in the basket. Egyptian officials, they say an investigation into the crash could take some two weeks. This is the world's deadliest hot air balloon accident in almost 20 years.

Now CNN's Reza Sayah is in Luxor Egypt. He joins us now with more. And Reza, I mean, this horrifying video of that crash. An investigation has been launched to find out what happened. What's the latest on that?

REZA SAYAH, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yeah, Kristie, those investigators were back at the crash site today. They're going to wrap up their investigation at the site today, according to the governor. Then they're going to take about a couple of weeks to hopefully, according to the governor, find a cause.

At the crash site today, there was also a memorial service. We were there, too. A couple of things stood out at this location. First off, the size of the balloon's wicker basket. It was huge. And we could tell by the imprint it left on the wheat field that it crash onto. The size of the imprint, I would guess, roughly 10 meters by 6 meters. This was a balloon basket that was carrying the 21 passengers, probably the most heart wrenching items we saw were two different sneaker, two trainers that probably belonged to two of the tourists who were on board, a grisly reminder of the tragedy.

Investigators say early indications are that this balloon crashed when something went terribly wrong as it was initially landing. Investigators say as it was 10 meters away from the ground, the landing crew tossed over a landing cable, a guiding line. And that line crashed onto a gas pipe. That pipe broke. It set off a fire. It launched the balloon back up into the air.

At that moment, these tourists on board had seconds to decide whether to stay put or to jump out. Three of them jumped out. Two of those who jumped out survived, the rest who went up in the balloon, they probably knew that they weren't going to make it, but there was very little they can do.

Those are the early indications of what happened, according to investigators. Again, the governor says it's going to take at least two weeks, Kristie, to find out the official cause.

LU STOUT: You know, what you just said, it's just a frightening account of what happened. And what impact will this, this disaster have on the tourism industry there, already crippled by all the political unrest in Egypt?

SAYAH: Yeah, we're seeing two things happen here among the people here in Luxor. First off, make no mistake, they are mourning the loss of 19 tourists. And then they're worried about the potential negative impact of this crash on the tourism industry, an industry that tens of thousands of people depend on.

When you have a grisly incident like this, it's going to generate a lot of publicity, a lot of television coverage, and that could create an impression that hot air balloon rides here in Luxor are dangerous and that's why the governor was out saying, look, this was the first fatality here. There's been thousands of hot air balloon rides, this was the first time there's been a fatality. Clearly, he was reassuring people. But that's going to take awhile.

Hot air balloon rides here in Luxor have been suspended until further notice, until this investigation is concluded -- Kristie.

LU STOUT: All right. Reza Sayah reporting for us live from Luxor, thank you very much indeed for that.

Now travel sites, they often recommend hot air balloon trips so that visitors can take in some of Luxor's legendary sites like Luxor Temple. And given the relatively high volume of such trips, accidents they've been rare. Now the last hot air balloon accident in Luxor took place back in 2009. 16 foreign tourists were injured when their balloon hit a mobile phone transmission tower. Also in 2008, four Scottish tourists were seriously hurt when their balloon went down. But until Tuesday's incident, the deadliest accident in recent memory, it took place in Australia. 13 people were killed in 1989 when two hot air balloons collided.

Now the U.S.-led force in Afghanistan has admitted it wrongly reported that the number of Taliban attacks in the country fell in 2012. Now a statement on NATO's international security assistance force website claimed that enemy attacks were down by 7 percent last year. In fact, the number of Taliban strikes remained virtually unchanged.

Now the ISAF, they blamed a record keeping error for the mishap, which has raised questions over recent claims of progress in the war. Now despite admitting the error, the Pentagon insists that Taliban forces have been weakened.

Now Chuck Hagel will be sworn in as the new U.S. Defense Secretary in a few hours. He arrived just moments ago at the Pentagon. The senate confirmed him on Tuesday with a vote of 58 to 41. Now Hagel is a former Republican Senator, but during his confirmation hearings some fellow Republicans criticized him over his past remarks on national security.

Now most of us have experienced a little bit of anger at the airport, but footage of a Chinese Communist Party official flying off the handle before flying off with his family has some people questioning his authority. Now David McKenzie reports from Beijing on a politician's petulance.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DAVID MCKENZIE, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, it's one of the most spectacular meltdowns caught on camera at an airport in recent memory. And it happened here in China, in southwest China, at the Kunming Airport.

This is a local politician and mining executive. He's trying to get home with his family. It was all caught on security cameras. He was late for his flight and when they said he couldn't get on, he got agitated.

The video has gone viral here in China, as you might expect. Many people expressing outrage at the selfish actions of a local politician. This isn't new in China and also no is air rage. In the last year, there have been ground staff assaulted, emergency exits kicked open and even passengers storming the runway to try and protest against what they see as poor service delivery.

With the middle class growing here in China, many millions more will be taking air travel in the coming years. The question is, will it spill over like this? Well, maybe not quite so much.

David McKenzie, CNN, Beijing.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LU STOUT: You're watching News Stream. And up next, bidding a fond farewell. The pope has a little over 24 hours from leaving the Vatican. Earlier today he delivered his last ever public address as pope. And coming up, we'll be live in Rome.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LU STOUT: I'm Kristie Lu Stout live at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona. You're watching News Stream. We'll have much more from this influential trade show in just a moment, but right now your world headlines.

Now Pope Benedict XVI has delivered his final words in public. Tens of thousands cheered as the pontiff delivered his last address to a packed St. Peter's Square in Vatican City. And the pope used the occasion to call for a renewal of faith in the Catholic church. He officially leaves office on Thursday when he'll enter a life of seclusion.

Now at least 18 people have been killed in a fire that swept through a six story building in the Indian city of Calcutta on Wednesday. Now authorities are trying to figure out what caused the fire.

And several people have been killed and wounded in a shooting at a factory in Switzerland. A local paper reports that the gunman killed two people and then himself. This all took place at a wood manufacturing facility on the outskirts of the central city of Lucerne. Now a police spokesman says the situation is now under control. Now four critically wounded people were flown to two local hospitals earlier.

Now let's recap our top story now. Pope Benedict XVI has delivered his final public address. And tens of thousands of people packed St Peter's Square to be part of this momentous occasion. It is the first time a pope has resigned in six centuries.

Now the pontiff said that the church has been through stormy waters, but that God would not let it sink.

And we are covering this momentous occasion from all angles today. Let's go to one of our reporters. Jim Bittermann joins us now live from Rome. And Jim, can you tell us more about what Pope Benedict said in his final public address?

JIM BITTERMANN, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, it was kind of a departure, because he moved from what he normally does on his Wednesday audiences. Basically, he frequently does spiritual messages, quotes from the Bible and (inaudible). This time it was a very personal message indeed, talking directly to the crowd. He thanked them for his support and prayers, he thanked the cardinals, the curia (ph) just about everybody that had helped him during the last eight years that he's been pope.

But he clearly, as you mentioned, made reference to the fact that while there had been some periods of light and joy, he said there's also been some periods in which he felt a little bit like St. Peter with the apostles in the storm tossed boat in the Galilee, but he said he knew that god was always with him.

He said that also loving the church meant that you had to take some difficult decisions, referring to his very own decision to retire, Kristie.

LU STOUT: You know, and as his farewell was televised, televised around the world, Benedict XVI basically asked hundreds of millions of people around the world to pray for him and to pray for the new pope.

Now I understand you have been covering the transition at the Vatican for decades now, could you describe the historical significance of this moment for the Catholic Church?

BITTERMANN: Well, this has never happened before, Kristie Lu, and so not at least in modern times. And so for I think everybody, including the church itself, this is very new territory that they're moving into. And just to give you an example, we only got an answer to some of our questions that were asked two weeks ago yesterday. They answered about what the pope would be called, waht kind of a cassock he would be wearing, what kind of shoes he'd be wearing, how much of the papal tradition he'd be carrying on. All those things were asked at the very first news conference two weeks ago it was announced he was retiring. And it took the Vatican two weeks to come up with that.

The other thing is that they still don't know what the date of the conclave is going to be. The pope signed an order earlier this week making it possible for the cardinals to call the conclave early. Normally under the constitution of the church that John Paul II set out, it would be from between 15 and 20 days after the seat of St. Peter is vacant, that is to say when a pope is either dead or now resigned, that basically 15 to 20 days after the cardinals would start the conclave to choose a new pope.

Well, now the pope departed from tradition and signed this order earlier in the week. And it's unclear exactly how that is going to work. The cardinals who are -- most of them are either in Rome or coming to Rome, will have to decide themselves when they want the conclave to start, and that -- the decision is not likely to be taken until Monday.

So there's a lot of uncertainty here. And it's a lot of new ground, Kristie Lu.

LU STOUT: Yeah, not much clarity about what will happen next with the succession process that will happen next.

And whoever will be the next pope, they will have a number of issues to confront. I mean, after Benedict XVI, what are the top challenges ahead for his successor?

BITTERMANN: Well, there's an awful lot to be done as far as the church is concerned. And a lot of things that the pope was saddled with from the beginning have not gotten any better during his reign, and in fact some cases have gotten worse. There is of course the whole sexual scandals that have taken place. There's also something we talked about in a story I did yesterday about the fact that there have been financial problems and financial reforms are said to be needed. And in fact with the Vatican bank there have been festering for decades. And there's just a lot of different issues, there's a lot of management problems as far as the church is concerned. Some people say that what we don't need is now a new pope, but rather a policeman to come in, a gendarme to come in and to straighten out the way the Vatican works.

It's difficult to say how this is all going to weigh on the comptrollers, the cardinals as they go in, what kind of a man that they're going to pick to replace Beendict XVI, but clearly even Benedict XVI has been saying that they need someone younger and somewhat more vigorous in terms of handling all the problems that the new pope will have before him, Kristie Lu.

LU STOUT: All right, Jim Bittermann reporting for us live from Rome. Thank you very much indeed for that. And the pope's resignation, it comes at a time, again the church is under so much intense scrutiny. It's coping with that wave of scandals.

Ben Wedeman looks back on several tumultuous years for the Catholic Church.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BEN WEDEMAN, CNN INTERANTIONAL CORRESPONDENT: "Suffer the little children and forbid them not to come unto me," Jesus said. Words perverted by hundreds of pedophile priests.

High level cases of child abuse have rocked the church in the Americas, Europe, and elsewhere and have dogged Pope Benedict from the beginning of his reign.

Just weeks before he was elected pope in 2005, then Cardinal Josef Ratzinger publicly lamented what he called the filth within the church. The meaning of his words were unclear then, but now better understood.

GERARD O'CONNELL, VATICAN ANALYST: He had to counteract a mindset, a culture, which was deep seated, which was a culture of coverup.

WEDEMAN: Veteran Vatican watcher Gerard O'Connell says Benedict was deeply disturbed by what he found when investigating abuse of children by priests.

O'CONNELL: So by the time he came -- he became pope in April 19, 2005, he had read about 10,000 dossiers and so no one has become pope with such an inner knowledge of what he called the filth of the church.

WEDEMAN: Benedict has met victims and apologized on behalf of the church. The church has paid hundreds of millions of dollars in damages to abuse victims.

In books and articles, investigator journalist Carmelo Abbate has documented the weakness of priestly flesh. He's investigated sex in the Vatican and pedophilia in the priesthood. He has nothing but praise for the soon to be former Pope Benedict.

"Finally we're talking about sexuality inside the church," he says, "about pedophilia inside the church. And behind the pope's final gesture is an attempt to lift the lid and confront this problem."

The picture that seems to emerge is one of a pope struggling to confront the issue of pedophile priests, but it's also a picture that some victims of abuse flatly reject.

DAVID CLOHESSY, SURVIVOR NETWORK OF THOSE ABUSED BY PRIESTS: ...action to protect kids.

WEDEMAN: As a teenager growing up in Missouri David Clohessy was repeatedly abused by a priest.

CLOHESSY: I just can't imagine that there's anything more important than protecting the safety of boys and girls in the pews.

WEDEMAN: The founder of the Survivor's Network for those Abused by Priests, he says Pope Benedict has been a tough enforcer of church doctrine, but woefully short in action against problem priests and against the church hierarchy who protected them.

CLOHESSY: He is the most powerful religious figure on the planet. And no one in Catholicism knows more about pedophilia than Benedict. He has been in the absolute perfect position to take dramatic steps that will make a real difference in the lives of children and he refuses.

WEDEMAN: The priest who allegedly abused Clohessy has since resigned the ordination. The pope compelled to confront the issue of abusing priests resigns his office on Thursday.

Ben Wedeman, CNN, Rome.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LU STOUT: As Pope Benedict prepares to step down, join us for a closer look at his nearly eight years as pontiff, his resignation and his legacy as the Catholic Church moves forward. That's the Legacy of a Pope. See it on Thursday 10:30 am in London, 6:30 pm in Hong Kong.

Now still to come on News Stream, much more from the Mobile World Congress here in Barcelona. Big news from FourSquare about how their mobile app is about to make it easier for you to spend and save money.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LU STOUT: Welcome back to News Stream live from the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona. And this week we've been walking the floor to check out the latest products being showcased by top tech brands. We have seen Nokia's new range of cheaper handsets, explored the tablet wars brewing between Sony, Samsung and Hewlett Packard.

But you don't have to take my word on what's big here in Barcelona. I'm joined now by David Pierce. He is the senior reviews editor at the tech website The Verge. So good to meet you finally in person here in Barcelona. Arguably the most -- the biggest booth and the sizable presence here is Samsung. What have you learned about Samsung the last couple of days?

DAVID PIERCE, THE VERGE: Oh, Samsung loves to have big booths. But one thing we've really learned about Samsung is that they kind of don't seem like they want to be here in a sense. So Samsung during the show sent out an invitation for the Galaxy S4, which is their big phone, their big device, and it's coming out in two weeks at an event in New York. So they're not doing that here. And they've typically done events like that here. And it's sort of part of a bigger trend, but they've still -- they're Samsung, so they always have a million announcements.

They announced the Galaxy Note 8, which is a giant -- I guess it's a tablet, but it also makes phone calls, so I don't really -- you hold it like this, I guess?

LU STOUT: It's a tablet -- yeah, we don't know what it is. It's a hybrid.

PIERCE: So Samsung is kind of continuing to do what they've always done. They're just blanketing the universe with everything. But they're really starting to pull away in a way that kind of Apple has done over the last several years and do their own thing.

LU STOUT: And this year has really been marked already as the rise of Samsung.

Now another big trend to watch and located right next to the Samsung booth is a huge Huawei booth. I mean, the Chinese smartphone makers, the tech companies are here in a very big way. I've noticed across the city of Barcelona major advertising spend.

PIERCE: Yeah, everywhere.

LU STOUT: Yeah, what have you learned from Huawei and DTE?

PIERCE: So, both Huawei and DTE are kind of stepping in where these other companies have left out. And they think they can -- this is their chance to get into the U.S. market in a really big way. So Huawei used this show to announce the Ascend P2, which is their flagship phone. It's a phone they really believe is going to be global and huge and popular. And they have all kinds of carrier partners that they haven't had before. So this is really almost a second coming out party for Huawei saying like we are a big consumer brand. We belong here. We make high end phones. They think that they can be with Samsung and Apple at kind of the high end of that range.

LU STOUT: That's right, they had a big showing at CES, now another big showing here.

DTE is showing up with the Firefox operating system smartphone. And that's an interesting trend that we've seen here is the launch of Firefox operating system, the mobile operating system. Is it going to be a dark horse in the race after Google Android and iOS?

PIERCE: I think it could be. It's interesting how much support they've gotten so quickly. There are a number of manufacturers that are building Firefox phones. There's Alcatel and DTE and Sony is even being rumored to do it and LG. So if they can get that much support this quickly, I think it really could be a big deal.

And they're mostly targeting emerging markets and sort of smaller countries where there hasn't been as much cell phone penetration, but if they can get to a place where they're big in those places and kind of as they grow into smartphones Firefox has a really good chance to be there over the longterm.

LU STOUT: Yeah, definitely, especially in the developing markets.

Now both the Verge and CNN News Stream, we've both had a chance to sit down with Stephen Elop, the CEO of Nokia. I just want to get your sense of where the company is now and how much momentum is behind Nokia?

PIERCE: It's interesting, we expected something big from Nokia at this show. Last year they announced the 808 PureView, which is sort of their wacky camera phone that's mostly a camera, but it was fantastic and at least got a lot of press and news and people were talking about Nokia again. So we thought maybe it would be a tablet, or maybe they'd have another camera thing, that was rumored. And they really didn't. And Nokia is -- they've always sold a lot of phones to those same emerging markets we're talking about. And they did a lot of that. They have a smartphone that's 15 euros. And that's pretty interesting, but in the sense of kind of big, buzzy things that people are going to get really excited about, it seems like Nokia kind of fell flat in a sense. And they -- Stephen Elop is very good a staying on message, but sort of intimated that there might be more things coming soon, but for right now it wasn't...

LU STOUT: Like a tablet -- yeah, but we couldn't get any word on that.

Last question for you, about the event itself, the Mobile World Congress. I mean, it's interesting that -- people from Google -- Google are here. There's no Google booth, there was no major announcement from Microsoft Windows. Did if feel a bit subdued this year?

PIERCE: It did a little bit. And I think what we're seeing is a lot of these companies with kind of depressed the way that it works and companies like Apple showing that you can have these big events and really kind of dominate the news cycle and excite people with your own venues, everybody is wanting to do that, even HTC who is right over there announced their big, flagship phone before we got here. They're showing it here, but they announced it at their own event last week. And Samsung is coming out in two weeks. And Google announced their Chromebook last week.

So it's -- there's a lot here, but it seems like a show like this -- and even like CES, they're becoming traditional trade shows again, where it's industry people coming to get to know each other and they make deals. There's a putting green upstairs it's perfect. You can deal.

But it seems like in a sense of big, consumer show where we see the really exciting stuff, it's starting to slow, or at least lull. And it's going to be interesting to see what a show like this does...

LU STOUT: The focus feels like it's more on the people in the industry as opposed to the products -- and the putting upstairs.

David Pierce of The Verge, thank you so much for joining us here on News Stream.

PIERCE: Thanks for having me.

LU STOUT: Thank you.

Now another trend to watch, mobile payments. Samsung and Visa they have announced a global alliance. And it's meant to make it easier for people to buy things using their phones. Now another agreement will help people save money with their mobiles. And it works like this: Foursquare will let users sync Visa and MasterCards. Now it already accepts American Express. And those card holders are then eligible for special deals when they check in and pay with the Foursquare app.

And that credit card deal could boost Foursquare's bottom line. And earlier I spoke to CEO Dennis Crowley. And I asked him if this is the start of a big revenue stream for Foursquare.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DENNIS CROWLEY, CEO, FOURSQUARE: It will be eventually. You know, we're just getting started here. We just started our monetization efforts last year, but we do have a million merchants that are now on the Foursquare platform and engaging with it regularly. And so that's a million merchants that we can go out to and start bringing some of these offers to.

LU STOUT: A million merchants. And how many people are checking in right now?

CROWLEY: We see about 5 million check-ins per day. We have about 3 billion check-ins in our database of about 30 million users. So like it's getting big, it's getting big really quick.

LU STOUT: And it's incredible user data, too, about shopping behavior. Do you plan to do anything with that?

CROWLEY: Yeah, well like one of our best products is the recommendation engine that we call Explore. And so the thing that Foursquare is getting really good at is offering personalized local search results for people, so you can go in and ask for food or coffee or, you know, Italian or pizza, anything, and we can give you these personalized recommendations on where to go. And we're really like some of the best in the business at doing that.

LU STOUT: And for those who are not fans of, or familiar with Foursquare, an explainer here. You know, why do you want to bring and wave your mobile phone in a retailer to get a special offer as opposed to coming in with a coupon. What do you feel?

CROWLEY: Well, people love using Foursquare to save money, right? And I think one of the things about coupons is you've got to remember to have them, you've got to remember to collect them, and sometimes people feel embarrassed about using them. And so one of the great things about the card offers that we have is it's just -- it's just you and your phone. Like you look at it, you see the deal, you say, yes, I want this. And no one knows until you swipe the credit card and the discount goes right onto your statement.

So like there's nothing really -- it's not a hassle, it's just built into the app. And it's great.

LU STOUT: It's also fun to use. It's like a game.

CROWLEY: Well, yeah, well people use Foursquare for all sorts of reasons like they use it to check in and share with their friends and to brag that there's some place interesting or just to remember the places that they've been to. And now you see a lot of people checking in actually saving money getting deals. It's just another benefit to a lot of our users.

LU STOUT: Now let's talk about your rivals. Facebook, they tried to build a Foursquare killer called Facebook Places. It hasn't really worked out for them. Is Facebook your biggest rival?

CROWLEY: Well, there's a lot of people trying to do what we're doing. You know, Google is in the mapping space. Facebook is in the social space. We're in a really good spot, because when people -- we've been around for four years. And when people signed up for Foursquare they signed up for a mobile social location service to share what they're doing with friends, to find out about what's going on nearby, and that's the one thing that we do.

Like Facebook does a little bit of everything. Google does a little bit of everything. And one of our core strengths is like, you know, we're doing mobile location and that's what people know us for and that's how people use it.

LU STOUT: So last time we talked was about three years ago. And back then it seems kind of like a long time ago. You know, Foursquare was relatively new. It was young. It was raw. What have been the lessons learned in the last three years?

CROWLEY: That's just a -- you know, it's a hard job, it's a hard thing to start a company around your kitchen table and then grow it to 160 employees across three offices and 30 million users. It's just a lot of work. And it takes -- you know, you have to really be patient with it. You have to listen to user feedback. You've got to make big trips like this and hire great people and -- you know, it's been a lot of fun and I'll tell you, the most rewarding thing for us is that -- you know, we're meeting with folks and everyone knows what Foursquare is, everyone wants to work with us. You see people in the streets down at bars and restaurants using the software that we create. And it's just really rewarding. It's been a lot of fun.

LU STOUT: Is Foursquare today the company you always wanted it to be?

CROWLEY: It's getting there, you know. It's...

LU STOUT: It's getting there? What's your vision?

CROWLEY: Well that's the thing, like, we want to build software that just really changes the way that you experience the real world. I think the best version of Foursquare is the one that you don't even have to think about using. Like, my phone is in my pocket right now. And as I walk around the streets of Barcelona or New York or wherever I happen to be, Foursquare should buzz and just tell me about interesting things that are going on.

And we're getting really, really close to being able to like let people see that vision. Like every month we get a little bit closer. And that's like really exciting.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LU STOUT: We actually didn't arrange that interview with Dennis Crowley before we got to Barcelona, we only found out that he was here when we checked into the Sagrada Familia on Foursquare. And we discovered that Dennis was there an hour before us. So we sent him a note on Twitter and asked him to come onto the show. We thought it was an appropriate way to work it at the Mobile World Congress.

Still to come here on News Stream, everyone knows FC Barcelona is one of the most famous football clubs in the world. I'll tell you why it's becoming known as a tech innovator as well.

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LU STOUT: Welcome back.

And the flamboyant former NBA star Dennis Rodman has arrived in North Korea. He is there to film a TV show with members of basketball's famed Harlem Globetrotters. And he singled out North Korean leader Kim Jong un as someone he is looking forward to meeting. Tensions are indeed high between the U.S. and North Korea, but the former Chicago Bulls star known to many as the worm insists that he is not in the country on matters of state.

Now Rodman tweeted this, quote, I am not a politician. Kim Jong un and North Korean people are basketball fans. I love everyone. Period. End of story.

Now Rodman also seems keen to do some celebrity spotting, but he might want to look at a map first. Now another one of his tweets says this, "maybe I'll run into the Gungnam Style dude while I'm here." Dennis, that probably won't happen. The rapper Sai (ph) who is behind the music video, he is from South Korea.

Now, more than a club, that is the motto of FC Barcelona, one of the world's most successful football club. And while covering the Mobile World Congress here in Barcelona we learned how Barca has embraced technology in a big way to connect with fans around the world.

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LU STOUT: This is one of the most famous arenas in all of sport, the home of FC Barcelona. The club has long been known for its success and its distinctive style of play, but it's also an innovator in the world of technology.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It is crucial the way we address the future of new technologies and social media because it's the only way to grow.

LU STOUT: One way that Barcelona is reaching out to its fans is through mobile apps, but these apps on the official Barcelona page were not made by the club, they were created in partnership with independent app developers.

The FCB apps program is simple: developers can send in an idea for an app on iOS or Android. And if approved, they get official Barcelona branding. They could use the rich history and famous players of this massive football club. And in return, revenue is shared between the app developer and Barcelona.

Getting ideas from developers outside the club also means Barcelona has a wider selection of apps than you'd expect.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: One of them is fitness app, like some sort of personal trainer. I guess we will never have a personal trainer app.

LU STOUT: Apps in the program also benefit from promotion on Barcelona's social media accounts. Barcelona boasts that it has more followers than any other football club on social media. But the club's president says he wants to make sure that additional contact leads to a connection in the real world.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We have to do it very carefully, because what we love is the contact with our fans, the human contact to see the faces, to know who is who, to give back to our members and through computer this is not possible.

LU STOUT: With nearly 60 million followers on social media, it is a huge pull of new fans attempt to visit to this famous stadium. As for why Barcelona has so many fans online? Well, the answer could be very simple.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Maybe because we have Messi on our team?

LU STOUT: It looks like super star Lionel Messi's value to Barcelona extends beyond the pitch.

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LU STOUT: Even Messi couldn't save Barcelona from going out of the Spanish Cup. Archrivals Real Madrid, they beat Barcelona 3-1 in their own stadium to knock them out of the Cope Del Ray. Christiano Ronaldo scored twice in a dominant display by Real Madrid, but Barcelona will soon have a chance of some form of revenge, they will play Real Madrid in the league on Saturday.

And that is it for us on day three of the Mobile World Congress here in Barcelona. Now Thursday is the last day of the show. We have a lot planned. We'll be speaking to Mozilla's chairwoman about the new Firefox mobile operating system and we'll show you some of the biggest phones of the show, literally, the biggest phones we could find.

And that is News Stream, but the news continues at CNN. World Business Today is next.

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