LONDON, September 20 (RIA Novosti) - Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich has come up with a novel solution to protect his privacy, with a laser shield against photographers installed on his new mega-yacht, The Times reported on Sunday.

"The high-tech system on Eclipse, a mega-yacht measuring up to 557ft, relies on lasers to block any digital camera lenses nearby," The Times said.

The boat, the world's biggest and most expensive private yacht, which has reportedly more than doubled in cost to 724 million British pounds ($1.18 billion) since it was commissioned three years ago, sailed out of Hamburg port last week on its maiden voyage, the paper said.

"The yacht - the fourth in Abramovich's private fleet - drips luxury. It boasts two helipads, two swimming pools - the larger of which doubles up as a dance floor when drained - and 6ft-wide home cinema screens in all 24 guest cabins," the paper said.