Italian PM Silvio Berlusconi set to resign after losing confidence

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ITALIAN Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi will resign after passage of a key budget bill.

The announcement capped a tumultuous day that saw the crucial budget vote pass parliament but fail to win the support of an absolute majority and thus maintain Mr Berlusconi's legitimacy as leader.

It also followed weeks of political and legal tumult for Mr Berlusconi, leader of a center-right coalition and a prominent figure on the world stage.

The Italian President's office said in a statement following a meeting between Mr Berlusconi and President Giorgio Napolitano: "Once this commitment (to economic reforms) has been carried out, the Prime Minister will submit his resignation to the head of state".

President Napolitano will then "proceed with traditional consultations with maximum attention to the positions and proposals of every political force - those of the majority from the 2008 elections as well as the opposition," it added.

President Napolitano's office said Mr Berlusconi had shown "his awareness of the implications of the results of today's vote" as well as "concern for the urgent need to give prompt answers to the expectations of European partners".

Earlier, leaders of both coalition and opposition parties called on 75-year-old Mr Berlusconi, Italy's longest serving post-war prime minister, to step aside.

The leader of the main opposition Democratic Party, Pier Luigi Bersani, said, "The Government no longer has a majority in this chamber".

Directly addressing Mr Berlusconi, he added, "Hand in your resignation."

Mr Berlusconi's main coalition partner - the Northern League party leader Umberto Bossi - also joined the chorus of calls for him to step down.

"We asked him to step aside," Mr Bossi said.

The opposition would like to see an independent figure like former European Commissioner and economist Mario Monti head a national unity government, according to Italy's ANSA News Agency.

In the crucial vote on Italy's 2010 public accounts, Mr Berlusconi secured 308 votes to pass the measure, but that was fewer than the 316 he needed to maintain his legitimacy as leader in parliament. There were 321 abstentions.

Borrowing rates hit new records after the vote on investor fears, with the yield on 10-year bonds reaching 6.76 percent and the spread between Italian and German benchmark bond yields widening to a new high of nearly five percent.

Mr Berlusconi spoke bitterly of betrayal as he stormed out of parliament, according to newspaper reports, AFP said.

Eight deputies who refused to support him were labeled "traitors" in a scribbled note captured on camera.

Fans line up for Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3

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THOUSANDS of gamers have declared war and stormed the shops for the latest instalment of computer game Call of Duty.

Sales are tipped to rake in more than $1 billion in just a few weeks.

Gaming stores at shopping centres including Tea Tree Plaza, West Lakes and Munno Para opened their doors at midnight, as part of a co-ordinated global launch for Modern Warfare 3.

The game's "campaign" mode continues the saga of global warfare and intrigue developed in the first two instalments.

Players must stop an invasion of North America and Europe by a Russian enemy force, while the narrative brings to a close the story of "Soap" and "Price", the two Special Forces troopers who've been the heroes of the series.

But the biggest drawcard for most gamers is the multiplayer mode, where teams and individuals playing on Xboxes, PlayStations and PCs across the world battle it out in real-time to earn points and rewards.

Retailer EB Games said the demand had already eclipsed any other title in the company's 14-year history.

The Call Of Duty franchise's past two releases each grossed more than $1 billion worldwide, putting them in the ranks of the top-earning entertainment titles in history, across music, film and gaming. More than 30 million people played Call Of Duty titles online in the past year, with an average 6.5 million people logging in to play on any given day, distributor Activision said.

Ethan Blaine, assistant manager of The Pimp Pad Adelaide, a video games bar on Franklin St, said the game's accessibility and ease of play was a major contributor to its success.

"It's such a popular game because it is so easy and fast to play," Mr Blaine said.

"Because you can go in with all guns blazing and it's not about teamwork, a lot of people really like that aspect of the game."

RMIT University new media expert Dr John Lenarcic said games such as Modern Warfare 3 were popular partly because they made action heroes of everyday gamers.

"We're talking about photo-realism that approaches or surpasses cinematic quality and people can actually be embedded inside that narrative," he said.

A promotional video featuring Australian actor Sam Worthington and an AC/DC soundtrack has had more than two million hits since it was posted on YouTube on Friday.

Facebook deletes blogger's account

[caption id="attachment_288" align="alignnone" width="650" caption="Account deleted: Chinese blogger Michael Anti's facebook account was deleted based on the company's strict policy against pseudonyms."][/caption]

CHINESE blogger and activist Michael Anti is fuming after having his Facebook account deleted.

Anti, a popular online commentator whose legal name is Zhao Jing, said in an interview on Tuesday that his Facebook account was suddenly cancelled in January.

Company officials told him by email that Facebook has a strict policy against pseudonyms and that he must use the name issued on his government ID.

Anti argues that his professional identity as Michael Anti has been established for more than a decade, with published articles and essays.

Anti, a former journalist who has won fellowships at both Cambridge University and Harvard University, said he set up his Facebook account in 2007.

By locking him out of his account, Facebook has cut him off from a network of more than 1000 academic and professional contacts who know him as Anti, he said.

"I'm really, really angry. I can't function using my Chinese name. Today, I found out that (Facebook founder Mark) Zuckerberg's dog has a Facebook account. My journalistic work and academic work is more real than a dog," he said.

Facebook officials weren't available to comment on his case.

The company says its policy leads to greater trust and accountability for its users.

"We have tried to keep the rule simple and fair by saying personal profiles must always be set up in the real legal name of the individual concerned," it said by email to Anti.

Dissidents in a variety of countries have argued that Facebook's policy can endanger human rights activists and others if their identities become known.

Anti said there is a long tradition in China for writers and journalists to take pen names, partly as protection from retaliation from authorities.

If Facebook requires the use of real names, that could potentially put Chinese citizens in danger, he said.

"For my fellow Chinese, this policy could easily help Chinese police identify them," he said.

It's not the first time Anti has had problems with an internet site.

In 2005, his blog on a Microsoft site was shut down by the company following pressure from Chinese officials.

Microsoft's action led to a public outcry.

Zuckerberg recently set up a Facebook page for his newly acquired puppy, "Beast," complete with photos and a profile.