Tag: Philippines

Manila, Philippines – Multinational food and beverage company Universal Robina Corporation (URC) has partnered with the Philippine subsidiary of Japanese drink company Asahi in order to tap into the cultured milk business, valued at PHP6.5b.

The partnership, done with Asahi Beverages Philippines (ABP), will see Goodday cultured milk drinks be soon available in stores nationwide. The cultured milk product contains the probiotic Lactobacillus paracasei MCC1849 to help improve immunity.

Goodday is ABP’s first foray into the Philippine beverage market, and both companies are introducing Goodday as Filipinos – having gone through adversities caused by the COVID-19 pandemic – now have a stronger appreciation for their health.

Irwin Lee, president and CEO at URC, said, “Consumers have made health and wellness a priority over the past few years, and URC’s joint ventures and product innovations in beverages are ready to address their needs. With our partnership with Asahi, we look forward to the addition of Goodday Cultured Milk Drink to our portfolio of beverage brands to better serve Filipino consumers.”

Meanwhile, Hemalatha Ragavan, CEO of ABP, commented, “We strongly believe that Goodday will be made available in all of URC’s distribution networks across the Philippines, and in the hands of our loyal consumers as the demand for immunity-boosting health beverages continue to rise.”

She added, “My team and I are ecstatic as we look forward to establishing Goodday as a household Filipino brand like how URC has done for all its current brands.”

Based on Nielsen’s Retail Audit 2020 on ready-to-drink beverages, cultured milk is the fastest-growing ready-to-drink beverage category in the country. It has outpaced yogurt and milk, while other categories have seen a decline. 

Manila, Philippines – Global visual communications platform Canva has launched ‘Canva Whiteboards’, a new and collaborative way to seamlessly organise ideas and bring them to life. This is available for free on the web, desktop, and mobile.

From workshopping projects to project planning and brainstorming, Canva Whiteboards is a simple and interactive way to map out big ideas with all the familiarity of the Canva editor. It offers seamless integration with Canva Presentations, which allows users to expand their page to a Canva Whiteboard with a simple click of a button — creating an infinite space for brainstorming, and real-time collaboration, which empowers users to capture ideas and brainstorm with their team instantly, as well as extensive media library, which enables users to access to Canva’s media library of over 100 million images, videos, audio tracks, and graphics.

Melanie Perkins, CEO and co-founder of Canva, shared that after more than a year of development, they are excited to launch Canva Whiteboards to the world – bringing the power the community knows and loves about Canva and enabling them to collaborate with their team on an infinite canvas

“In this day and age with teams working worlds apart, we believe the right visual communication tools will not only help teams come together with ease but will also fuel greater collaboration and productivity in the workplace. This is at the heart of Whiteboards, and we’re excited to see the magic it will unlock for our community around the world,” said Perkins.

Canva has also unveiled Canva for Teams, a new paid subscription plan for teams of all sizes looking to create professional content together and collaborate with premium workplace tools and content management workflows.

The new subscription plan includes all the magic previously in Canva Pro and unlocks features exclusively on Canva for Enterprise, to become the new plan for teams of two or more people. It includes features like brand controls, approval workflows, and template locking. With the rollout of Canva for Teams, Canva Pro is now Canva’s paid subscription for solo users like entrepreneurs and content creators. 

Jen Howard, VP of Canva for Teams, said, “As companies embrace flexible and hybrid-working models, there’s an increasing reliance on technology to communicate and collaborate. In today’s visual economy, workplaces need compelling ways to meet the needs of globally distributed teams. Canva for Teams, our new paid subscription plan, is built to empower millions around the world to seamlessly create and collaborate together.” 

Meanwhile, Yani Hornilla-Donato, country manager of Canva Philippines, commented that they are happy to unveil both Canva Whiteboards and Canva for Teams in the Philippines as they continue to empower content creators, entrepreneurs, and teams of all sizes to collaborate at scale, wherever they may be.

“With Filipinos going digital now more than ever, Canva Whiteboards will be instrumental in bringing any team’s ideas to life while the introduction of Canva for Teams will empower businesses with an all-in-one design tool they need in creating impactful content,” said Hornilla-Donato.

Manila, Philippines – Buy now, pay later (BNPL) platform Atome has partnered with global financial services company Mastercard to launch the Atome Card in the Philippines, offering Filipino consumers a new way to pay with credit. 

The Atome Card provides cardholders with an Atome line of credit that can be used to pay online and in-store retailers by simply presenting their Atome Card during check-out. It offers no annual fees, sign-up fees or other hidden charges, easy application on mobile, payment flexibility, virtual or physical card can be used anywhere Mastercard is accepted, and easy view/manage of payment schedule.

At launch, consumers in the Philippines can register their interest for the Atome Card with one click, directly via the latest version of the Atome app, or via the Early Bird registration in the Atome website. Selected consumers from the Early Bird phase will receive an email inviting them to apply for the Atome Card.

Magic Tang, Atome’s payment partnerships director, commented, “The launch of the Atome Card marks an exciting new chapter for Atome, as it’s the first financial service we offer apart from Buy Now, Pay Later. With no annual fees and minimum income requirements, the Atome Card will give many underserved segments in the Philippines access to a flexible credit facility, the first such innovative solution across the region with more markets to come in the next few months.”

Meanwhile, Simon Calasanz, Mastercard’s country manager for the Philippines, said that Mastercard is delighted to partner with Atome on this innovative product that will contribute to building a cash-lite society and drive financial inclusivity by serving more than 70% of Filipinos who are unbanked or underbanked and do not qualify for credit cards.

“The Atome Card will enable cardholders with choice, control and flexibility to manage their finances and is available to use anywhere Mastercard is accepted. For merchants, this also means increased sales and better conversion rates, extending the benefits of digital commerce to more consumers and businesses in the Philippines,” he added.

In July 2022, Atome partnered with local-based online payment processing platform PayMongo to expand BNPL acceptance among merchants in the country. The partnership will enable PayMongo’s over 10,000 merchant network in the Philippines to offer their customers flexible deferred payment options, with no additional annual or service fees as an alternative checkout payment option.

Manila, Philippines – Local telco giant Globe has launched a new portal called www.makeitsafe.ph which aims to educate and raise awareness within the public about internet safety, especially cyberbullying, which affects many young people.

The site includes a glossary that lists the most popular terms and emojis that the youth currently use in chats and social media. This urban dictionary can help parents and guardians detect if their children are being exposed to offensive language or being bullied online. 

In addition, the site also gives free access to eModules from the Digital Thumbprint Program (DTP), a series of workshops developed by Globe based on the Optus Digital Thumbprint in-school program in Australia. It aims to promote digital citizenship and cyber safety among the youth for a safe online experience. The e-modules may be used by teachers, parents, the youth, and the general public.

The site launch is aligned with Globe’s commitment to equitable access to quality education and the promotion of lifelong learning under the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.

Yoly Crisanto, chief sustainability and corporate communications officer at Globe, said, “We would like the public to learn more about responsible online citizenship to keep netizens safe and protected from cyber violence, scammers, malicious attacks, and other online threats. At the same time, we are able to provide access to professional help if these concerns are already affecting their mental wellness.”

According to Globe, the site is crucial in bringing light into the safety of children online which largely rests upon those who watch over them. The site aims to arm parents, guardians and caregivers with the know-how that would enable them to get actively involved in teaching online safety and responsibility to children.

Manila, Philippines – Omnicom Media Group (OMG) Philippines has named Meryl Yap as the agency network’s new general manager, which bolsters the network’s leadership bench strength on the back of OMG Philippines Unilab’s win.

She will report to Mary Buenaventura, CEO of Omnicom Media Group Philippines, and will officially assume her new role immediately.

Yap has held client leadership roles throughout her career working in global and local advertising agencies. In her previous client leadership roles at Mindshare, she oversees the planning and strategy portfolio for various Unilever brands across the food, confectionery, oral and skincare categories.

Prior to her leadership in Mindshare, Yap was previously the head of digital sales and sales strategy at media conglomerate ABS-CBN, and was in charge of expanding and developing ABS CBN’s digital ecosystem selling strategy.

Her client leadership experience across a diverse portfolio of blue-chip clients such as Beiersdorf, Google, Nissan and Visa will see her lead OMG Philippines in the new era of growth.

In her new role as OMG Philippines’ general manager, Yap will be overseeing the agency’s client accounts, managing new business pitches and streamlining agency processes to ensure the continuous growth of its clients’ businesses. 

Buenaventura said, “Meryl’s extensive client servicing experience within the industry along with her knowledge and capabilities, makes her the right person to continue the success of OMG Philippines. With her on board, I am confident that OMG Philippines has the best team who are focused on building meaningful partnerships with our clients to help them accelerate their business growth.”

Manila, Philippines – OpenMind, a bespoke team within GroupM that serves as the agency of record for Nestlé Philippines, has been awarded the FMCG giant’s total search business, which includes SEO, SEM, and e-retail search. This move effectively consolidates Nestlé Philippines’ entire media business under one agency.

Emm Ordinanza, vice president and head of media integration at Nestle Philippines, commented, “We are looking forward to our partnership with OpenMind on Nestle’s search strategy, knowing full well their commitment and capability to deliver a smooth and focused search experience while embracing a cross-channel approach that will synergically reinforce each other.”

Meanwhile, Puneet Arora, GroupM’s CEO for the Philippines, said that they are thrilled to secure Nestlé’s mandate to activate a truly integrated media strategy – founded on OpenMind’s Pervasive Performance model – that will cultivate long-term value and good growth for Nestlé Philippines’ business.

He added, “Using GroupM’s proprietary consumer and industry insights, we tailored a holistic plan and innovative approaches that will accelerate demand and drive preference. With a dedicated team working exclusively for Nestlé, we look forward to positively impacting their business in this thriving market.”

Manila, Philippines – ABS-CBN and TV5, two of the media giants in the country, have reached a new partnership deal where ABS-CBN has acquired shares from TV5, which is majorly owned by MediaQuest.

According to a joint statement, ABS-CBN Corp will acquire 6,459,393 primary (new) common shares in TV5, representing around 34.99% of the total voting and outstanding capital stock of TV5 for PHP2.16b.

The deal also sees MediaQuest, which is owned by the PLDT Beneficial Trust Fund, its stake reduced to 64.79 percent after the deal is finished. ABS-CBN can also acquire additional shares in TV5, which may increase the Kapamilya network’s stake in the Kapatid network to 49.92% after 8 years.

As part of the partnership deal as well, cable and satellite TV subsidiaries of ABS-CBN and PLDT also entered into a similar deal. Cignal Cable Corp, under MediaQuest, said it was acquiring 38.88% of Sky Cable Corp, under ABS-CBN, for PHP2.862b.

“The investment of Sky Cable by Cignal Cable is expected to benefit the former’s existing customer base consisting of over 300,000 cable subscribers and close to 350,000 broadband subscribers as of the end of June 2022,” MediaQuest said.

The company also added, “The proceeds of the sale of the Sale Shares, the Convertible Note and the issuance of the Debt Instrument in the total amount of PHP7.5b will be used to repay certain obligations of ABS-CBN and Sky Vision and to fund the investment of ABS-CBN in TV5.”

ABS-CBN Chairman Mark L. Lopez said the partnership was an opportunity to help TV5 grow, strengthen its free to air network, and take it to the next level.

“For ABS, it presents a fantastic platform for us to achieve synergies in production content and talent management as well as maximizing our content delivery. We look forward to be of greater service to the public as we come together in taking TV5 to the next level,” Lopez said.

Meanwhile, Manny Pangilinan, chairman at MediaQuest, commented, “ABS-CBN has always been the leading developer and provider of Filipino-related entertainment content not only in the Philippines but overseas as well. Our companies have always had these cherished values of providing top and quality programs in the service of the Filipino people and together we believe we can achieve this in greater measure and success.”

Last year, the ABS-CBN network began showing popular primetime programs of ABS-CBN such as ‘FPJ’s Ang Probinsyano’ as well as the long-running variety show ‘ASAP Natin ‘To’ on TV5.

Manila, Philippines – The Philippine-based go-to platform for franchising, Easy Franchise, which was founded by Jose Magsaysay, former CEO and co-founder of Potato Corner, is bringing back its annual franchise sale in the Philippines, which will happen on 28 August 2022. 

Dubbed ‘Franchise Day 8.28’, Easy Franchise makes franchising more accessible to Filipinos by offering exclusive promos, discounts, deals, and services, as well as ₱5,000 off on any Franchise Day partner for the first 10 to invest during the one-day online franchise sale.

Through the event, interested entrepreneurs can get their own food and beverage franchise with ₱40,000 up to ₱100,000 franchise fee discount from local partner brands like Chops To Go, Estings Bellychon, Persia Grill, 0402 Cafe, and Tapsulit. Franchisees can also enjoy promos and discounts as early as now on Easy Franchise’s website. 

Meanwhile, specialty drink shop Cha Tuk Chak currently offers a ₱276,000 franchise fee discount and will provide ₱100,000 worth of free milk tea bar and equipment exclusive on Franchise Day, while international brand JoyBean Global now has a ₱100,000 franchise fee discount with ₱40,000 worth of free supplies and will offer an additional ₱100,000 off their franchising fee on Franchise Day. H2O MineralPlus is also offering water refilling franchises at up to ₱250,000 off and will provide free auto refilling dispensers worth ₱72,000 on Franchise Day 8.28.

Jose Magsaysay, co-founder of Easy Franchise, said, “Technology has a major impact on closing gaps in a variety of industries, including franchising. We are creating a digital bridge through Easy Franchise that will enable Filipino migrants and OFWs to join in the franchise sector.”

Meanwhile, RJ Ledesma, co-founder of Easy Franchise, noted, “We wanted to create something that could bridge the gap between the franchisor and the franchisee’s needs. A platform for all things franchising, Easy Franchise enables every aspiring Filipino to become an entrepreneur.”

Bubbles Lim, general manager and co-founder of Easy Franchise, commented that ‘Franchise Day’ is not only about the promos and deals but also a learning-filled event packed with success stories and expert insights. 

She further shared that they have put together educational content and activities that will set the attendees up for success even prior to the actual event. Easy Franchise provides an innovative and customer-centric solution for both stakeholders, from assisting with the application process, franchise management and development, all the way to organising franchise events.

“Owning a franchise is beneficial because it is not only self-sufficient but also time-conservative. With Easy Franchise’s next launch, entrepreneurs can now invest their money in good faith,” Lim said.

In addition, Easy Franchise will launch its ‘Easy Franchise Funding’ service, which provides non-collateral franchising loans. Franchisees can invest in a partially financed franchise that would already come with franchise management. Aside from this, it also plans to set its ‘Micro Franchising Service’ in motion soon, a more convenient and conservative version of starting a business. This service targets what they call ‘The Starter Investor’, or passion-centric, investment-aware, financially-savvy, and techie entrepreneurs.

Easy Franchice’s Micro Franchising structures deals from a list of concepts already curated by their team. The management team focuses on operating every branch through its own micro franchising model. The platform will be giving free consultations until 28 August 2022.

Manila, Philippines – Digital lifestyle network Summit Media has teamed up with content creator revenue accelerator Bent Pixels Asia (BPA) to expand the media group’s YouTube ad solutions, which includes monetising its pre-roll ad inventory for the YouTube channels of its online magazines.

This comes after Summit Media is currently foraying into growing its YouTube channels as their new digital direction.

Through this strategic partnership, BPA and Summit Media will offer advertisers ‘Reserved Media’ – an ad solution that allows advertisers to target Summit Media’s YouTube channels, and enables brands to exclusively run their pre-roll video ads for full share of voice roadblock for a given period of time, effectively owning Summit Media’s sought-after, quality audience and ad inventory on the platform.

Some of Summit Media’s YouTube channels including Esquire Philippines, Top Gear Philippines, Cosmo.ph, PEP.ph, Yummy, Preview, SPIN.ph and Spot.ph among others will be onboarded onto BPA’s network of premium YouTube creators. 

BPA is part of Hepmil Media Group, a leading technology-driven media network that owns PGAG, a local leading comedy content platform.

Lisa Gokongwei-Cheng, Summit Media President, said, “Summit Media is very excited to be a partner of Bent Pixels Asia to sell our YouTube inventory directly to advertisers. Both groups have always stood for innovation in a rapidly changing industry, and we look forward to helping our clients reach their goals together.”

Meanwhile, Erwin Razon, general manager of BPA, commented, “We are excited to offer brands the opportunity to reach the quality and premium audiences of Summit Media on YouTube through our Reserved Media Solutions. With the content expertise of both BPA and Summit combined, we will continue to grow the network’s reach on the platform to cater to larger audiences that will be valuable for brands to target with premium media buying opportunities.”

BPA will also provide YouTube channel development programs to Summit Media, including workshops, best practices, and tools to help them sustainably grow the reach and subscriber base of its brands’ channels and produce quality content to engage their audiences.

Manila, Philippines – The Philippine telecommunications industry is facing new challenges, as telco giant Globe Telecom and new player DITO have exchanged public statements regarding their business operations and performance.

It first started with DITO, who filed two complaints at the Philippine Competition Commission (PCC) against Globe Telecom and Smart Communications for their competitive business behaviour, more specifically during their interconnection agreement.

Said interconnection agreements allow DITO users to send texts and make calls to users of PLDT’s Smart and Globe.

“It has become very difficult for our subscribers to interconnect with Globe and Smart,” said Adel Tamano, chief administrative officer at DITO through CNN Philippines.

Meanwhile, the PCC has acknowledged DITO’s complaints, stating that interconnection is an essential component of the telecommunications industry as it allows interoperability and exchange of calls, SMS, and other information from one network to another.

Johannes R. Bernabe, the OIC chairperson at the Philippine Competition Commission, said, “Our Competition Enforcement Office (CEO) is now evaluating the merits of Dito’s complaints. The Commission has 10 days within which to decide whether or not to give due course to the complaint. If given due course, our CEO will proceed to investigate the charges and if it subsequently finds sufficient basis, file with the Commission en banc a Statement of Objections against the allegedly erring entities.”

In response, Globe Telecom has released a statement, asking the country’s National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) to require DITO to pay up to PHP622m in interconnection penalties.

According to Globe’s statement, around 1,000 fraudulent calls– identified as international in origin but masked as local calls– are allowed to pass through DITO’s network to Globe users every day, a clear violation of interconnection deals.

“Clearly, DITO has not only failed to compensate Globe, but it also has not taken any serious actions to curtail bypass activities emanating from its network and terminating in Globe’s. Indeed, these bypass activities have not waned but have in fact continuously increased over the said period. DITO’s twin failures to check these bypass activities and pay Globe what it is justly due have worked on a continuing serious prejudice against Globe,” the telco said.

Globe and DITO have signed an interconnection agreement in February 2021 which covers domestic mobile calls and SMS enabling Globe’s customers to make mobile calls, send SMS with DITO Telecommunity’s customers without additional charges.