Tag: Internet

Manila, Philippines – Fiber broadband and technology provider Converge ICT Solutions is working with global satellite internet constellation firm to deliver broadband internet to remote regions in the country. This collaboration aims to bring unparalleled, high-speed, low-latency satellite solutions to businesses and government sectors nationwide.

With Starlink’s high-bandwidth, low-latency connectivity, Converge can serve industries that demand reliable and resilient internet, such as construction, mining, agriculture, retail, and hospitality, in far-flung areas which are too expensive to reach via fiber connectivity.

Moreover, as an authorised Starlink reseller, Converge offers end-to-end turnkey solutions, including installation, network management, monitoring, and maintenance. 

Dennis Anthony Uy, CEO and co-founder at Converge said that this move is a vital step in the company’s evolution from a telecom provider to a full-fledged technology powerhouse.

“We’re among the few in the Philippines authorised by Starlink to resell its services—an acknowledgment of our deep market expertise and commitment to meeting the evolving needs of both enterprise and government clients. More importantly, this is about transforming the way businesses operate. We’re bringing solutions that empower industries to scale and innovate, even in the most remote areas,” he said.

Meanwhile, Sherie Ng, managing director of Converge Singapore, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Converge ICT Solutions, commented, “Converge already has a formidable fiber network across the country. But we believe that by beefing our satellite-powered connectivity solutions, we can charge full speed ahead in expanding our Global Business portfolio. This collaboration with Starlink is a key pillar to this aspiration.”

She added, “Many businesses operating in remote and underserved regions still struggle with unreliable internet. By integrating Starlink into our suite of products, we’re unlocking new opportunities for these industries and the countless Filipinos who depend on them.”

Plans to expand Starlink in the country began in 2022 when the Elon Musk-owned company entered the country as part of its Southeast Asian expansion. 

At that time, Starlink Internet Services Philippines Inc. was registered as a Value-Added Service (VAS), and is mandated facilitate its operations in the country bringing the low earth orbit (LEO) satellite internet technology into a nation fraught with unstable internet connections.

Australia – Challenger ISP Superloop has teamed up with Leo Burnett Australia and Zenith Australia to launch a bold new campaign, urging Australians to take a stand against overpriced and slow internet by reviving the iconic planking meme from the early 2010s.

The campaign was inspired by research from Leo Burnett Australia, which found that many Australian households are using internet speeds comparable to those of American families 12 years ago, when the planking meme was popular. With no clear benchmark for high-speed internet, many Australians have accepted slow, outdated connections as the norm.

Superloop’s campaign urges Australians to ditch slow internet. The 30-second hero film shows people planking in awkward spots, symbolising how outdated internet and high prices have left them ‘stuck in 2011.’ Directed by Gustav Sundström and produced by Hooves, the film highlights Superloop as a network built for the fast future of the internet.

Ben Colman, chief marketing officer at Superloop, said, “Superloop is about delivering exceptional internet speed at outstanding value. However, Australians have been stuck paying high prices for internet speeds of yesteryear. We wanted to take this opportunity to challenge Australians to stand up to their internet providers by making the switch to Superloop—all packaged up in a cheeky and playful approach to get their attention.”. 

“This work is yet another demonstration of the game-changing connected platform we’ve got at Publicis Groupe Australia. Leo Burnett Australia and Zenith Australia’s partnership has been critical in building exceptional and effective solutions for us at Superloop,” Colman added. 

Meanwhile, James Beswick and Rowan Foxcroft, associate creative directors at Leo Burnett Australia, shared, “Millions of people are still metaphorically stuck in ancient planking times. Clearly, what those people need is for Superloop to unshackle them from outdated internet and set them free.”

The campaign rolls out in October across major digital platforms, including OLV, YouTube, social media, and audio, with a second phase set to launch in the New Year.

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia – The Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) has released an online statement to address recent concerns and misconceptions surrounding their ongoing efforts to regulate internet traffic through Domain Name Service (DNS) Management.

This follows after public outcry on MCMC’s initiative to restrict certain internet access, calling it ‘draconian’. For MCMC, they reiterated that Malaysia’s implementation of such measures is for the protection of vulnerable groups from harmful online content.

“An inaccurate claim also suggests a so-called blanket ban, with some suggesting that legitimate websites have been made inaccessible because of DNS redirection. Websites are only blocked when they are found to host malicious or unlawful content, such as online gambling, pornography, copyright infringements, scam, phishing, and etc. Legitimate websites remain accessible as usual, and DNS redirection ensures that harmful websites are blocked while legitimate websites remain reachable without noticeable disruption,” the commission stated.

MCMC has stated that it has issued instructions to ISPs to redirect DNS traffic towards third-party DNS servers back to their own DNS servers. This is to ensure that users continue to benefit from the protection provided by local ISP’s DNS servers and ensuring that malicious websites are inaccessible by Malaysians.

It also stated that some users choose to use third-party DNS servers like Google DNS or Cloudflare, and is said to be offering various benefits such as faster speeds. However, they might not have the same level of protection for harmful content particularly in the local context, compared to local ISP’s DNS servers.

For context, DNS is a system designed to turn website addresses into numeric IP addresses to locate websites on the internet. Internet Service Providers (ISPs) typically operate their own DNS servers and these servers can be configured to block access to certain websites or domains based on their content. This is a common method used to protect users from harmful content.

Following said measures, MCMC said that between 2018 and 1 August 2024, the commission has blocked a total of 24,277 websites, classified into various categories: online gambling (39%), pornography/obscene content (31%), copyright infringement (14%), other harmful sites which include the sale of unregistered products, unregistered money lending activity, disclosure/sale of personal data (12%), prostitution (2%), and unlawful investments/scams (2%).

“MCMC remains committed to maintaining a safe and secure online environment in Malaysia, balancing the protection of internet users with the need for seamless access to legitimate online content,” they said.

Malaysia – Telecommunications provider TIME dotCom has partnered with advertising agency Fishermen Integrated in its latest ‘Mission: Gig Speed Home’ to revolutionise how Malaysians experience high-speed broadband in their homes.

The campaign is a digital film, produced by the directors of Think Tank, featuring Elizabeth Tan as ‘Agent E’, who is on a mission to install Time Internet’s state-of-the-art Gig Speed Home in a high-rise residence. Agent E must install the broadband covertly and flawlessly without being detected.

The action-packed film aims to highlight Time Internet’s ultrafast and dependable broadband and its unique selling point: that it’s almost invisible to notice a broadband installed in the house.

With no more tangled wires and dead zones in the house, Time aims to transform the way Malaysians experience home broadband connectivity. The product’s ‘invisibility’ is made possible by Huawei’s Fibre-To-The-Room (FTTR) technology, which seamlessly weaves invisible micro-optical fibres into designated spaces, ensuring no room is left behind.

As part of the campaign, TIME also held a grand ‘Gig Speed Home’ event to showcase the selling point of their product by speed testing every room in the IPC Shopping Center. The event activation was orchestrated by Apxara and decked out with aesthetics from IKEA.

Andrew Yeoh, group head of marketing at TIME dotCom, said, “Time has always been at the forefront of Internet technologies that create better customer experiences. We were the first to launch 1Gbps, the first and only to launch true 2Gbps, and the first to market same-day and extended hours installation. The next evolution of this is our Gig Speed Home, based on the latest FTTR (Fibre-To-The-Room) F30 technology from Huawei, which allows the fiberization of your entire home via micro-optical cables, allowing consistent speeds of up to 1Gbps in every corner.”

He added, “We entrusted the challenge of bringing this revolutionary tech to life with Fishermen, entirely confident that they would create a clutter-breaking campaign that would communicate the real, tangible benefits in an engaging and entertaining way. Once again, they’ve more than delivered.”

Also commenting on the campaign, Joyce Gan, group brand director at Fishermen Integrated, said, “In our ever-changing and fiercely competitive industry, where setbacks are common, it’s essential to have enduring partnerships like the one we’ve nurtured with Time Internet.”

“Our long-standing collaboration does not only allows us to better understand our clients but also stirs our creative spirit. We’ve found a special synergy with Time, fueled by our shared boldness and determination to push creative boundaries. Together, we’ve ventured into uncharted territories, propelling both our companies to newer heights,” she added.

Andrew Tan, executive creative director at Fishermen Integrated, also shared, “The product is invisible fibre. So invisible, you won’t even know we installed it. We don’t shy away from it but instead sell it in the most entertaining way possible. Our latest work for Time Kabel Besar reunites Fishermen and celebrity Elizabeth Tan. Tapping on to her popularity from the movie Abang Long Fadil 3, the commercial features Elizabeth Tan reprising her role as an agent that performs stunts in the latest Time Kabel Besar Gig Speed Home cinematic film.”

Singapore – Singaporean parents are increasingly concerned about their child’s safety on the internet, according to Google’s ‘APAC Kids and Families Online Safety Survey’, which mainly reveals that seeing inappropriate content online is the most experienced online safety issue by Singaporean children, with one in two children having encountered it at least once in the past year.

These findings come at a time where children in Singapore are spending more time online than ever before, with four out of five local children now spending one to six hours online daily for education and entertainment.

Notably, data from the survey suggests that the top three types of inappropriate content reported by parents were misinformation at 55.4%, deceptive ads and spam at 50.7%, and violent content at 48.7%.

However the survey also revealed that Singaporean parents are becoming less confident in discussing online safety with their children. This year’s survey found that only 79% of respondents feel confident in engaging their children on this topic, down from 83% last year.

Factors for this decline in confidence may include difficulty of finding age-appropriate and easy-to-understand examples of online safety issues and the rapidly evolving nature of the online world. In addition, nearly half of the parents surveyed said they struggle to find the right time to talk to their children about online safety.

Despite these gaps, more than half of respondents said they are willing to allow their children to spend more time online and expect to change digital rules for their child’s Internet use as they grow older. This also draws concern as parents are faced with the need to develop new rules – sometimes before even putting the fundamentals in place – which makes the online journeys of children increasingly challenging to manage.

Speaking on the results, Norman Ng, regional operations lead, trust & safety global engagement at Google Singapore, said, “Our survey results highlight the urgent need to make online safety a central part of their conversations at home. We understand that each family’s relationship with technology is unique, and we encourage parents to make good use of tools such as Family Link and Be Internet Awesome to aid their digital parenting.”

“As the saying goes, it takes a village to raise a child. We remain committed in stepping up our efforts in working collaboratively with industry partners and experts to ensure digital literacy remains more accessible for all,” he added. 

Lastly, the survey also indicated several suggestions and tools that parents can use to a create safer experience online such as age-appropriate content restrictions via Family Link, blurring graphic content through SafeSearch, child-friendly app settings or versions such as Youtube Kids, and online education and safety resources like The library of Digital Safety Resources and the Be Internet Awesome program.

Singapore – While a privacy-first internet is the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow, advertisers and companies are not withheld from disclosing the real pains of transitioning and adapting to a cookieless digital space when Google dropped the news of cookie deprecation in 2020. 

Advertisers were, however, granted a breather, when the cookies phase-out, originally eyed by the tech giant in 2022 had been delayed a bit further into 2022.

Shortly after the announcement, data solutions provider Lotame released a poll among 200 Singapore-based senior decision-makers in digital media and marketing to further learn their sentiments on the future of cookieless internet. 

First off, half, or 55%, said they were happy with Google’s decision to delay citing that they needed “more time to prepare.” 

A top concern among digital media professionals is losing revenue amid weakened ad-targeting opportunities, where about 57% of marketers believe in reduced ad-targeting opportunities, with over two-thirds (66%) expecting a 10% to 25% drop in revenues as a result of the loss of third-party cookies. Meanwhile, almost 60% (57%) of publishers anticipate a reduction in the workforce brought by revenue loss. 

In adopting new identity solutions, the primary reason for Singapore-based marketers is to support audience targeting (59%), while among publishers, 64% would foremost adopt identity solutions for data privacy. 

With the optimal number of ID solutions, 36% of Singapore marketers were open to using any number, while 35% of publishers cited two, with 30% saying three.

“A cookieless future is closer on the horizon and whether or not the industry ‘feels prepared,’ the end result is inevitable,” said Luke Dickens, Lotame’s managing director for ANZ.

Dickens adds, “Digital advertising is changing, and identity solutions will be part of that new future. Addressability and connectivity are at greatest threat in the post-cookie world.”

With a stronger call for privacy, Apple, aside from Google, had digital media players also rethinking their ad strategies with an update on its privacy features earlier this year.

Apple’s new iCloud Private Relay has been designed to protect users’ privacy by ensuring that when browsing the web in Safari, no single party, including Apple itself, can see a user’s identity and the sites he or she is visiting.

The same survey found that 53% of Singapore-based respondents are concerned about their ability to monetize the email channel amid Apple’s new privacy feature, while 46% said they are concerned for the impact on email hash identifiers.

Relatedly, email-based identity solutions (69%) were the most popular choice when asked what types of ID solutions marketers and publishers were planning to test in the next six months to one year. Contextual (44%) was in second place, followed by cohorts (33%) and probabilistic (27%).

The current report ‘Beyond the Cookie: Identity Solution Adoption & Testing Among Marketers and Publishers’ is part two of Lotame’s cookie-focused study, where the pilot study was released in February and examined how organizations are beginning to plan for the phase-out of third-party cookies.

Dhaka, Bangladesh – SHAREit Group, the global internet technology company, mainly dedicated to mobile internet application development and digital services, is set to bolster its business in the Bangladesh market to fulfill the diverse demands of the people in the country.

According to a report by Dhaka Tribune, the number of internet users in Bangladesh has increased by 19%, totaling 7.7 million between 2020 and 2021. In January 2021, there were 47.61 million internet users and the Internet penetration in the country stood at 28.8%.

SHAREit, which owns the flagship product, SHAREit app, aims to double down on the highly engaged digital audience in the country. The company said that while there is a vastly increasing number of internet users in Bangladesh, the development of internet channels and resources is rather slow, and therefore opening up the need for a rapid and reliable internet application.

The SHAREit app offers opportunities for users to access a platform that enables online streaming videos, file transfer facilities, as well as applications aimed at gaming, entertainment, and personalized digital content. 

Starting mainly from offering a file transfer app, SHAREit group has since branched out to offering brand marketing, digital advertising, and entertainment solutions. SHAREit offers a wide inventory for advertisers and has also performance advertising solutions to drive installs for brands and gaming apps. In addition, SHAREit offers in-game advertising and payment solutions. 

“Over the years, our growth as a platform for marketing and entertainment as well as the meteoric rise of total users has been phenomenal. Now that we have many users in Bangladesh, we want to strengthen our business in this country to partner with local and global apps and serve our users in more enhanced ways,” said Karam Malhotra, partner and global vice president of SHAREit. 

The SHAREit group has mapped out plans to cater to the digital entertainment, brand marketing, and advertising solution needs of the country. This is expected to benefit the users in multi-faceted ways as it comes as an alternative channel for brand marketing as well. 

According to SHAREit, its presence is now at 200 countries and is available in 45 languages. Currently, SHAREit Group has its offices in various regions in the world, including Singapore, Indonesia, the Philippines, and the United Arab Emirates, among others.