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BBC World Service Americas and the Caribbean

The Thought Show

Factual

Brings together in a single hour The Why Factor; More or Less and Trending.

The Thought Show: The World’s Most Profitable Product; “Blessers” – South Africa’s Sugar Daddy Problem; Why are we Afraid of Robots?

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Factual: Life Stories

Most profitable product

26/05/2016 GMT

The World’s Most Profitable Product; “Blessers” – South Africa’s Sugar Daddy Problem; Why are we Afraid of Robots?

BBC World Service - The Thought Show, The World’s Most Profitable Product; “Blessers” – South Africa’s Sugar Daddy Problem; Why are we Afraid of Robots?

Is it true that the iPhone is the most profitable product in history?

Is it true that the iPhone is the most profitable product in history; a backlash in South Africa over the rise in “blessers” or sugar daddies, and why are we afraid of robots?

Was a BBC correspondent right when he described the iPhone as the most profitable product in history? To find out, the More Or Less team compare and contrast a range of products suggested by listeners.

In South Africa a 'blesser' is a man who showers gifts and money on women in exchange for a relationship or sex. An online backlash against these sugar daddies has been trending this week. Even the health minister has spoken out because of fears the 'blesser' phenomenon is contributing to high rates of HIV among young women. And in Bangladesh, Wikipedia is fighting online pirates who are using its site to allow people to secretly download bootlegged Hollywood films for free. The practice is illegal, but some say it poses difficult questions about internet access in the developing world. BBC Trending reports.

Robots are in our homes, our factories, on battlefields and in hospitals. Some are smarter than us, some are faster. Science fiction is filled with malign machines which rise against humanity. In the Why Factor this week, Mike Williams asks if we have reason to fear the machines we are creating.

(Image: An iPhone on a pile of coins. Credt: Shutterstock)

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The World’s Most Profitable Product; “Blessers” – South Africa’s Sugar Daddy Problem; Why are we Afraid of Robots?

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