Converge ICT Solutions Inc. has provided a dedicated fiber connection to facilitate the vaccination program of the city government at the City College of Angeles and the Angeles National High School. 

Converge provides a dedicated fiber connection to facilitate the Angeles City vaccination program at the City College of Angeles and the Angeles National High School. 

“We requested for a dedicated line from Converge, and (Converge CEO) Dennis Anthony Uy provided it immediately. Since then, there has been no interruption in our vaccination efforts, and the process has been much quicker,” said Angeles City Mayor Carmelo G. Lazatin Jr. 

“As the city that nurtured our company from the very beginning, Angeles City will always hold a special place for Converge. Even as we’ve grown nationwide, our ‘birth city’ is always top of mind. We’re ready to help the local government in their efforts to serve the public better, especially if it involves healthcare,’’ said Dennis Anthony Uy, CEO and Founder of Converge. 

The connectivity is used by the government’s health workers for pre-registration, registration, and tagging of vaccinees, said Irish “IC” C. Calaguas, chief adviser to Mayor Lazatin.

Moreover, to fast-track the vaccination drive of the A1-A4 priority groups, the connectivity is used to access information such as vacancy of slots in the vaccination sites. 

“It’s very important to know if there are available slots, which we can access through the main database in city hall. With this connection, we are able to do that, and implement the prioritization quicker. We’re able to maximise the capacity of the sites,” said Calaguas. 

The city government is planning to put up a third vaccination site in Barangay Sapalibutad in Angeles which has a capacity of 1,000 individuals, while the existing vaccination sites have a capacity of 6,000 each. 

“This long-standing partnership with Converge has truly helped us with improving our healthcare delivery. In 2019, Converge donated P 5 million to rehabilitation of the Ospital ng Angeles, and we were able to purchase an x-ray machine,” added Mayor Lazatin. 

As of July 8, Angeles City has inoculated 55,000 individuals, 10,000 of which are already completely vaccinated. This represents 13% of the city’s overall population. Angeles City is seen to inoculate 100% of its population by November, assuming no delays in supply.

TCI or Telecommunications Connectivity Inc. (TCI), is the joint venture company formed by DITO, Globe and Smart to enable number porting services in compliance with the Mobile Number Portability law. The TCI is the implementing arm for all activities between mobile service providers on one hand and the mobile number portability service provider (or the clearinghouse) on the other.

“The entire telco industry and the Philippine government are pushing forward with the same goal of providing Filipinos with better telco services. Aside from encouraging healthier competition amongst the players, MNP also grants Filipinos the freedom to switch to their preferred mobile service provider seamlessly and conveniently. Na walang alinlangan,” said Atty. Adel Tamano, treasurer, Telecommunications Connectivity Inc. chief administrative officer, DITO Telecommunity 

A separate entity is required to facilitate decision making and approvals in the various contracts that will be entered into during the course of the implementation of mobile number portability. It will be too unwieldy to secure approvals from the 3 operators of any decision or contract that will have to be entered into with third parties. 

Melanie A. Manuel has been named as TCI’s Interim General Manager. Manuel is an Industrial Engineering graduate whose telco work experience includes Domestic Carrier Relations, International and Domestic Settlements, Settlement Systems, IS Business Analysis, and Human Resource Management. 

TCI will be coterminous with the implementation of mobile number portability. For as long as the law requires mobile number portability, TCI will continue to exist for the same reasons it was organized. Note though that TCI will just be on limited manpower complement.

Mobile Number Portability or MNP, as a global practice enables a mobile phone customer to keep their number even when they switch networks or change their subscription from postpaid to prepaid and vice versa. The process itself is free of charge.

Republic Act No. 11202, also known as the Mobile Number Portability Act, ensures that mobile phone users can keep their numbers even when they transfer to another service provider, or when they switch their subscription from postpaid to prepaid, or vice-versa. 

MNP helps promote consumer welfare by fostering the freedom to choose and to respond to quality, price and other relevant considerations without consumers having to change their mobile numbers whenever they change mobile service providers or subscription plans. Porting is FREE. 

To port within networks, one needs to meet the following requirements: ● An active SIM and the requestor is the assignee of the mobile number to be ported 

● No remaining balance from your previous bill (for postpaid) 

● No existing court prohibitions 

● No pending transfer of ownership 

MNP will be commercially available in the Philippines on September 30, 2021. 

Unlike earlier implementations of MNP, the mobile business has grown in complexity because of the vast array of service offerings and customization that are attached to a mobile number, which may not easily be unbundled when moving to another service provider. The three operators also have different channels for topping up prepaid loads and differ in systems which greatly affect interoperability.

The operators invested a total of P120 Million, so far. It is expected, however, that they will spend more because under the Mobile Number Portability law, the service is free of charge for the customer.

Syniverse was chosen by the Philippine mobile operators through a technical and commercial evaluation system to be the mobile number portability service provider (MNPSP). The company will bring in the technical infrastructure to fulfill its primary function as clearing house for the three telcos and ensuring smooth implementation of number porting services.

 More than 50 million citizens — over half the population — do not use any form of online banking.

The average person in the Philippines spends more time on the Internet than any other country in the world. Filipinos are online over 11 hours each day, compared to a global average of just six hours. Indeed, with a total population of more than 100 million, 71% of Filipinos are active Internet users, creating the perfect environment to develop the country’s digital economy through Financial Technology (also known as FinTech).

Despite being the most active online, more than 50 million Filipinos — over half the population — do not use any form of online banking. According to an official government report published in 2019, only 8% of Filipino adults have an active online account. This, combined with the 97% of Filipinos who still trade in cash, has created increased risks during the global pandemic when in-person interactions are limited.

In recent years, Huawei has been collaborating closely with the largest bank in the Philippines, Banco De Oro Unibank (BDO), to realize the bank's strategic ambition: to continue improving business efficiency and customer services through digital transformation, in order to bring inclusive finance to more Filipinos.

In April 2021, BDO rolled out BDO Pay, a mobile wallet and contactless payment solution that provides users with convenient and instant access to digital banking services. On the path toward inclusive digital banking, BDO is actively embracing technological innovation to upgrade its legacy infrastructure, improve its competitive edge, and develop more innovative services across the entire business.

BDO's digital banking expansion is powered by Huawei's OceanStor Dorado All-Flash Storage Solution, which implements a reliable, secure, and future-proofed data-sharing platform that is virtual and in the cloud. The Huawei Data Management Engine (DME) and OceanStor Dorado Storage make up the foundation of the solution, intelligently safeguarding the data of the bank’s growing customer assets and transaction history.

Overcoming the limitations of a legacy system

BDO’s refresh of its IT infrastructure was largely driven by the increasing capacity requirements that arose as the business grew. The legacy system was limited in its capacity to fully process and make use of the data resources that could create new value; therefore an upgrade was required. In addition, the bank was experiencing the effects of siloed IT suites, resulting in storage utilization of less than 40% and much lower throughout.

To remove this obstacle, Huawei OceanStor Dorado provides a high Solid-State Drive (SSD) configuration ratio with SmartTier, enabling a 1.3 GB/s bandwidth and significantly improving the performance of the data-sharing platform. Moreover, OceanStor Dorado features HyperReplication and a Storage Area Network (SAN) + Network-Attached Storage (NAS) unified storage system to meet BDO’s file-sharing and backup requirements. This helps achieve an active-passive system to protect all business data, from images and voice notes to scanned documents and more. Huawei OceanStor Dorado also supports flexible service expansion, slashes service rollout times, and accelerates data monetization in storage resource pools. In fact, during a Proof of Concept (PoC) performance test for BDO, the entire backup service time was slashed from two days to just six hours.

In addition to performance requirements, Operations and Maintenance (O&M) was also in need of an upgrade, as the legacy infrastructure lacked an automation orchestration platform. Over-reliance on manual O&M also made system fault diagnosis complex — not to mention inaccurate — resulting in the maintenance department being flooded with complaints. Digitizing O&M improved diagnosis, accuracy, and problem-solving efficiency, as well as bringing down related management costs.

Now, using Huawei’s DME, BDO’s storage utilization has been boosted from 40% to 70%. And the intelligent fault diagnosis capability of the system has seen efficiency soar to 90%. The DME also manages data resource pools, which are created and configured based on service levels to manage hot, warm, and cold data by layer, using algorithms to automatically convert hot data into warm or even cold data. Such nonessential data is then stored on lower-cost media to reduce resource waste and improve service efficiency. Put simply, Huawei DME effectively ensures the full lifecycle management of the storage system, with backup and recovery solutions available to unleash the full value of data.

“During the Proof of Concept test, I was impressed with the high performance and reliability of Huawei's product. We trust Huawei for its service-centric value, fast response to our demands, and its commitment to continuing to innovate future technologies for the Financial Services Industry. This is why we hope to build long-term cooperation with Huawei,” said Dennis Tangonan, Infrastructure Operation Head, BDO.

BDO's recent IT infrastructure upgrade and refresh of the Virtual Private Cloud (VPC) is another step in the bank’s digital transformation journey. Meeting the constantly changing demands for capacity and services is at the heart of BDO’s business operations as industries enter the intelligent era. BDO will continue to innovate its storage system in order to provide the best products and services for its customers. Alongside BDO, Huawei will continue to support the bank on its digital transformation journey by providing leading-edge services and technology so BDO can maintain its position as the largest bank in the Philippines.

To keep up with the latest innovations that technology can offer to today’s education, Jose Maria College (JMC) partners with telecommunications giant, Huawei, last July 6, 2021 in an agreement to pursue the fifth industrial revolution of educational technology.

Through this partnership, students will soon be able to access the most modern educational tools such as state-of-the-art Learning Management Systems (LMS), Virtual Laboratories, Virtual Reality, Smart Campus, etc.

According to Ken Sentorias, the JMC Information and Communications Technology Office (ICTO) Director, the opportunities are limitless because both JMC and Huawei are on the same page of commitment and that is to deliver the latest educational technology.

It can be noted that the Philippines is among the countries that is still in the third industrial revolution of educational technology. Students from developed countries such as Japan, China, and the United States are currently the only ones experiencing the fifth industrial revolution.

However, JMC believes that this partnership will bring the institution a step closer to realizing its goal of delivery quality education through the use of technology. “We are planning the best for the students. And next year, we are going to announce something really great,” Sentorias quoted.

True to its word of creating "New Value Together, Win Together," Huawei Philippines has recently recognized the significant contributions and exemplary performance of its industry and academic partners, conferring the ICT Talent Partner of the Year 2020 award to STI College, which has the highest number of students passing the Huawei certifications offered by Huawei ICT Academy. 

Cultivating Filipino ICT Talents at the Early Stage 

As a tech-driven educational institution with a large network of schools in the Philippines, STI College understands the difficulties faced by students who are pursuing ICT-related courses. Despite the increased adoption and use of digital technologies in the country, digitalization efforts in the education sector remain impacted by the broadband penetration and access to advanced technologies. Students often fall short of meeting the industry's talent requirements, struggling to acquire up-to-date knowledge and credentials, such as virtual training and certification.

STI College at present has the highest number of students passing the Huawei certifications.

STI College took on the challenge by nurturing students to become job-ready, future-ready, and life-ready. To achieve this, STI introduced its Enrollment to Employment System, wherein students get applicable education, job market skills, job preparedness, and job placement assistance. 

The first step is the Learning Systems Development, which ensures that the curriculum content is up-to-date and job market-oriented. To complement this, STI implements the Academic Delivery System to guarantee that highly-qualified and certified faculty members, and state-of-the-art facilities of campuses are at par with the standardized courseware and curriculum. STI integrates in-demand ICT technologies into its courseware materials to prepare students for their dream careers. 

The third step, Student Certification, assures that students are prepared for employment through rigid assessment, evaluation, and certificate programs. Before the students leave the security of their four-walled classrooms, they are given the opportunity to undergo on-the-job training with  STI's reputable partner companies.

Connecting Students with Future Employers

With its partnership with Huawei ICT Academy, STI College delivers Huawei ICT technologies training, encourages students to get Huawei certifications, and develops talents with practical skills for the ICT industry and the community. Huawei helps STI College integrate in-demand ICT technologies into its programs to better prepare the students for future certifications. The Academy offers more than 100 certification exams and 22 technical fields to pave clear the career development paths for STI students.

STI College has so far produced 299 students certified in five technology domains: cloud computing, Big Data, artificial intelligence, routing and switching, and storage. Huawei ensures that its courses match the needs of the ICT industry in general and its partner enterprises in particular to guarantee employment for students.

An industry certification validates the skills and readiness of the students to join the ICT workforce. Every certification is valid for three years, and the students' names appear on Huawei's online database as Huawei Certified ICT Associates (HCIA). This improves students' competitiveness in the job market as well as schools' employment rate.

Regine Gila Cabeltes, a Bachelor of Science in Computer Engineering graduate of STI College, realized the benefits of being Huawei-certified soon after she finished her course. "Being a Huawei Certified ICT Associate made it easier for me to land the job I aspired. The technologies covered in the HCIA courses are prevalent in the company where I work. When I was answering the technical questions during my job interview, it was like answering a certification exam," Cabeltes shared.

Prof. Beronika Peña, STI College's ICT and Engineering Courseware Development Head, is one of the teachers at Huawei ICT Academy. Peña received an Excellent Instructor with a Level A Award from the Academy in 2020. "We are grateful to be an ICT Academy. Huawei has provided us the means to promote ICT talent development to our teachers and students. Through this partnership, we look forward to producing more competent and industry-ready graduates," she said.

Contributing to the Development of the ICT Industry

Establishing one's career in today's competitive industries has become a challenging pursuit to most job seekers. Employers, too, are increasingly having difficulty finding the right person for the job. Too often, there remains a huge gap between the skills required by the industry and what a graduate has to offer.

Given the current state of ICT talent development in the Philippines, Huawei ICT Academy and STI College have committed to equipping Filipino students with the needed knowledge and skills to prepare them for their future career in the ICT industry. In the long term, the partnership aims to bridge the gap in talent supply and demand toward the sustainable development of the Philippine ICT industry said Mr. Todd Liu, President of Enterprise Business Group, Huawei Philippines. 

 LG's premium line of monitors immerse you in everything from content creation to gaming

 

Over the past year, working from home has gone from the exception to the norm. The convenience of foregoing hours stuck in traffic, as well as being safe from the pandemic, directly translates to increased happiness, efficiency, and productivity. Consumers were quick to transition at home. However, not all setups were conducive as a workspace. One of the biggest issues that arose was the requirement for proper computer monitors. One of the segments that grew the most over the past year has been monitors. According to the International Data Corporation (IDC), in the 4th quarter of 2020, the monitor market grew 16.9% year over year with shipments surpassing 39.2 million units worldwide.

L-R: LG Philippines Managing Director Sungjae Kim, LG Monitors Brand Ambassador Luis Manzano, LG Philippines Product Director for Monitors Peter Uhm

LG Electronics, always at the forefront of innovation, has seen this surge and developed new line of monitors that improve upon existing technology in order to help users even more. Whether you’re a hardcore gamer, a budding streamer, or just working from home, LG has a monitor that’s perfect for you. They provide a wide variety of improved features from breathtaking colors, fast response time, to clearer images to enhance customer’s experience.

To introduce the new line of monitors to the local market, LG Electronics Philippines hosted the LG Monitors: Performance Beyond Boundaries livestream event on their social media channel to showcase what the new displays are all about. This was hosted by LG brand ambassador Luis Manzano and featured several other influencers who have had experienced the new line of monitors, namely actor and director Joross Gamboa, photographer Magic Liwanag, and gamer, cosplayer, and content creator Myrtle Sarrosa.

Actor and director Joross Gamboa for LG UltraWide™ monitor

LG UltraWide™ monitors lets you immerse in everything from content creation to gaming. See a panoramic view made possible by the extra wide 21:9 IPS display for true color accuracy at wide angles. Experience easier multitasking, quickly switch between applications and enjoy a full, unencumbered view. It offers 33% more screen space than a regular 16:9 aspect ratio. Stop Alt-tabbing and start viewing side-by-side. HDR10 brings work and virtual worlds to life, backed by up to 350 nits of brightness. This display tech elevates textures, elements, character movements and natural light and shadow. The 3-side virtually borderless design with slim bezels will give you a wider view of your screen. For gaming, it has an AMD FreeSync technology eliminates the tearing difference between the graphics card’s frame rate and monitor’s refresh rate. Joross Gamboa admired the versatility of the LG UltraWide™. “LG monitors give you the flexibility to adapt to situations as it happens. Whether it’s for work or for leisure, LG UltraWide™ will get the job done for you.”

The UltraFine Display Ergo has a flexible ergonomic stand that can be adapted to all the environmental chacracteristics of each user, including physical attributes. It can improve not only work productivity and efficiency, but also user’s convenience. LG’s technologically and ergonomically advanced stand helps to promote good posture through its high degree of adjustability, enabling each user to create a perfectly customized workstation. LG's UHD IPS Display features realistic, true color, enhanced contrast, clarity and detail at wide angles. UHD 4K resolution presents breathtaking clarity and fine detail with four times the resolution of Full HD. In particular, HDR delivers a more dramatic, dynamic visual immersion experience. Magic Liwanag was ecstatic about the color rendition that the LG UltraFine monitor offers. “The 4K IPS display delivers a comfortable viewing experience by reducing color shift from different vantage points. After shooting, editing, and printing, all the colors are correct.”

Photographer Magic Liwanag for LG UltraFine Monitor

LG UltraGear™ line of monitors lets you pave the way to victory crisp visuals, fast response time, and the sharpest clarity. If you’re fed up with dimming and flickering screens, you’ve come to the right monitor. With IPS 1ms Gray to Gray you’ll dominate and clinch victory-without the side effects of extreme speed. It is NVIDIA-tested and officially verified G-Sync® Compatible monitor, reducing screen tearing and minimizing stutter for a smoother, faster gaming experience. Objects are rendered more clearly for smoother gameplay and an almost surreal visual fluidity. Being able to see even the most dynamic and fast-moving objects amidst all the action can give gamers a competitive edge. IPS display with 99% of the sRGB provides outstanding color accuracy and wider viewing angle, so it delivers high-fidelity color for reproducing even more vivid scenes on the battlefield. With a connection to an HDR-capable console (Xbox One S / PS4 Pro) or HDR-supported graphics card, users will enjoy punchier brightness and highlights with deeper shadows and silhouettes. Myrtle Sarrosa gushed about how her LG UltraGear™ monitors have helped level up her gameplay. “It virtually eliminates screen tearing and stuttering. Dynamic Action Sync elevates your gameplay for a pro-level experience.”

 

Gamer, cosplayer, and content creator Myrtle Sarrosa for LG UltraGear™ monitor

 

For the standard monitor, LG still delivers. LG Monitor with IPS Full HD Display technology highlights the performance of liquid crystal displays. Response times are shortened, color reproduction is improved, and users can view the screen at wide angles. This display has slim bezel on three sides and doesn't interfere with dazzling precision, which allows you to create an optimized work environment through convenient tilt adjustment. It offers an ergonomic design. Its convenient tilt adjustments with clean uni-body design allow you to create an optimized work environment. Eye strain is reduced thanks to the Flicker safe technology, Reader mode, and Color weakness feature. Luis Manzano was also impressed with his LG Standard monitor. “This has everything you could want in a modern monitor – it’s full HD, it has a borderless design, ergonomic, and has the eye comfort features. If you want a dedicated work monitor at home, you can’t go wrong with this.”

LG Monitors Brand Ambassador Luis Manzano for LG Standard Monitor

Sungjae Kim, LG Philippines Managing Director, said “As the whole world made an abrupt pivot into working from home, the need to provide monitors that deliver results and promise productivity was crucial. The latest series of monitors deliver superior productivity and entertainment experiences and are perfect for both home and office use. LG is committed to provide the most practical and advanced products that meet the daily needs of users.”

To end the livestream event, Peter Uhm, LG Philippines Product Director for Monitors, shared the brand’s newest plan to push products for the holiday season. “We hope that the introduction of these new monitors to the local market will help in boosting productivity as working from home becomes the norm. We are currently running a 3 month long celebration of all things LG with the LG Life's Good Festival. We will be raffling off over 1 million Pesos worth of products so we hope you will join us in the festivities.”

LG’s newest line of monitors are available in all authorized dealers nationwide both in-store and online. Visit LG.com.ph for a complete list of our retail partners. You can also visit LG's Official Flagship Stores:

Lazada: lazada.com.ph/shop/lg-official-store/ 

Shopee: shopee.ph/lgofficialstoreph

 

Shopping online, ordering your favorite meals and even interacting with your favorite celebs just got more exciting with GLife!  The one-stop-shop that upgrades you to your superlife! 

#ICYMI GLife, your one-tap entry-point to all things online shopping has just added even more merchants you’ll definitely love. Shopping for a meal for the family? A snack to eat? Or even just looking to rock out to some new speakers and tunes, GLife has got you covered, now you don’t need to go through the hassle of constantly switching apps because they have got it conveniently available for us all! Here’s a rundown of this month’s newest merchants that’ll make you want to add-to-cart ASAP.

Top Picks For Your Taste Buds

Whether it’s your cheat day or not, add these delectable options to your mental menu! 

Savor the flavors of Southeast Asian delights from Nanyang where you can get your kaya toast and kopi fix or go for heartier options like their curry, laksa, or Hainanese chicken rice meals. If it’s more of a dimsum day for you, enter the Oriental gates of Paradise Dynasty and enjoy fine Chinese dining right in the comforts of your own home. 

For more special occasions, relish the nostalgia of childhood classics with Goldilocks or go ahead and treat yourself or your family with comfort food feasts from The Racks Group with special deals from Racks, Tenya, & Rackshack. For a more personal touch, choose to make your own feast and cook up something different with trusted quality ingredients from The Rare Food Shop.

Get your fill of balanced meals with healthy options like Kenny Rogers and Go! Salads, or indulge from time to time with all the good stuff from Wildflour and Bricklane Doughnuts.

Whatever the craving, whatever the mood, and whatever the occasion - you’re bound to find something that makes your taste buds come alive on GLife.

Hobbies & Recreation

Even when it comes to different hobbies and interests, GLife has something for everyone. 

Take a break from tech and bond with your family or your closest friends with some fun games from Hobby Corner - your one-stop hobby shop for people of any age. Make the mood extra fun with some good tunes enjoyed through high quality audio from JBL’s speakers, headphones, and sound systems! 

If you’re into mobile gaming, why not flex your skills in some competitive casual gaming with Goama Games? Play anywhere by staying connected with a 5G SIM and no expiry data from GOMO! And when it comes to all your different multimedia needs, gadget goals, and dream upgrades, you can trust merchants like Datablitz, Game One PH, and Cherry to have what you need.

Home Essentials & Feel-Good Finds

From home appliances to home improvements and all the everyday essentials in between!

If you ever find yourself needing a break, curl up with a good book from Fully Booked where you can enjoy free shipping for a minimum spend of P799! You can also surprise your friends and spread some joy with something different by getting their favorite celebrity to give them a greeting with FanLove!

For those of you about to attend a period party, make your days feel extra nice knowing you’re switching to better habits that are better for the environment with Nalawoman - your go-to place for eco-friendly period care products at an affordable price where you can also get free shipping for a minimum spend of P500 when you enter the promo code “gcashnayan”. 

Aside from giving yourself and the environment some extra TLC, you can keep yourself and your family - including your fur babies - in tip-top shape with vitamins, supplements, and other health essentials for you and your pets from Healthmart and PetMart.

Want to save more on groceries and other good finds? Head on over to Triber! Asia’s social e-commerce platform for community group buying now accessible on GLife with up to 80% off in deals and discounts. You can easily breeze through how it works by going to Triber on GLife and tapping the “how to group buy” button under the FAQs section.

Curate your space with GLife. Invest in upgrades with Xtreme Appliances and explore home living possibilities with premium products from ConcepStore. Organize and declutter with quality home products at affordable prices from OKStore. And add a warm, rustic touch with Domesticity where you’ll find handcrafted pieces combining beauty and function made by a Gawad Kalinga Community in Negros Occidental. Get everything you need to turn your house into a home with GLife.

There’s always something for everyone to enjoy at GLife and if you haven’t checked it out yet, this is your sign to do so! Stay tuned for even more merchants you’ll love made even more exciting with exclusive promos and offers you won’t want to miss. If you don’t have the GCash app yet, you can download it via the App Store or Google Play. Just register your account and enjoy GCash as your new super-life app!