GMA revives the good old Pinoy tales with ‘Alamat’

Alamat

GMA News and Public Affairs—the group behind the groundbreaking socio-political and historical TV series Bayan Ko, Katipunan, Ilustrado, Titser, and Sa Puso Ni Dok—is coming up with a new weekly series that hopes to revive Filipinos’ interest in folk tales.

Entitled Alamat, the series features six episodes of 2D and 3D animated renditions of Philippine legends namely, Alamat ng Bayabas, Juan Tamad, Langgam at Tipaklong, Mariang Sinukuan, Mahiwagang Singsing, and Ang Unang Bahaghari. It will air worldwide on GMA Pinoy TV beginning July 19.

Six teams of writers, directors, producers, actor-dubbers and professional animators, some of whom had prior experience in giant animation studios abroad, worked on the project.

According to Jaileen Jimeno, program manager, the primary goal of the series is to encourage the audience, especially young viewers, to appreciate the once well-loved but now almost forgotten tales of lore which were used by elders to impart good values and traditions to the youth of their time.

Each episode features the voices of various Kapuso stars and personalities who give life to the characters. The first episode, Alamat ng Bayabas, will showcase the voices of veteran actor Pen Medina and GMA Artist Center talent Harvey Almoneda.

Characters for the next five episodes are voiced by Gabby Eigenmann, Glaiza de Castro, Mike Tan, Kylie Padilla, Louise de los Reyes, Bea Binene, Jeric Gonzales, Betong Sumaya, Love Añover, Maey Bautista, Pekto, John Feir, Tonipet Gaba, and Roi Vinzon.

 

Tune in to the premiere episode of Alamat on July 19 on GMA Pinoy TV.

GMA News TV International now available in Hong Kong via now TV

Jessica Soho

Award winning GMA News personality Kara David

I JUANDER Susan Enriquez

I JUANDER Cesar Apolinario

Philippine broadcast giant GMA Network delivers the latest news and information from the country straight to Hong Kong with the launch of its international news and public affairs channel, GMA News TV International, through the carrier now TV beginning June 2.

 

“This year marks GMA International’s 10^th year of bringing Filipinos abroad closer to home,” says GMA Vice President and Head of International Operations Joseph T. Francia. “As we celebrate this milestone, we continue to uphold our commitment to bring quality Kapuso programming to a wider audience,” he adds.

 

Powered by the Philippines’ most trusted news and public affairs team, GMA News TV International is the top choice to meet the Filipinos’ demand for complete, accurate, and credible news from home, provided by the Network’s multi-awarded news personalities and top-rated programs.

 

Among these are its flagship newscast State of the Nation with Jessica Soho, hosted by Peabody award winner and highly regarded broadcast journalist Jessica Soho, which features in-depth analyses on current issues.

 

The only show of its kind currently on Philippine TV – Investigative Documentaries, hosted by Malou Mangahas solidly follows the paper trail behind issues every week. Investigative Documentaries assesses the performance of political clans, studies the impact of government policies and investigates corruption.

 

Powerhouse, hosted by award-winning journalist Kara David, gives the public never before seen access into the private lives – and homes – of the country’s most powerful individuals.

 

I Juander led by Susan Enriquez and Cesar Apolinario, has captured viewers’ hearts with its unforgettable social experiments and its entertaining discussion of Filipino culture, food, traditions and superstitions.

 

Game-changing weekend documentary programs Reel Time and Front Row tackle poverty and social ills, telling the raw stories of the subjects themselves, using no hosts or voice-overs.

 

Moreover, GMA News TV International offers live telecasts of the latest news coverage and breaking news from the Philippines.

 

With this new launch, GMA International, the business unit that manages the operation and distribution of GMA’s international channels, strengthens its partnership with now TV and distributes GMA Pinoy TV, GMA’s flagship international channel, and GMA Life TV, GMA’s international lifestyle channel, in Hong Kong.

 

Ms. Loke Kheng Tham, PCCW’s Executive Vice President of Pay TV, said: “We are delighted to provide Pinoys in Hong Kong with their favorite home country channels exclusively on now TV, as part of the Filipino Pack.” She added: “Now TV is Hong Kong’s largest pay-TV provider, offering more than 190 top-class channels to 1.2 million customers. Adding GMA News TV International to our lineup further demonstrates now TV’s commitment to providing all customers with a wide range of content choices. On this occasion, we are very pleased to serve Hong Kong’s Pinoy community with comprehensive Filipino programming.”

 

The GMA channels are included in The Filipino Pack, which is priced at priced at HKD 108 per month. GMA Pinoy TV and GMA Life TV are also available for individual subscription. To subscribe, interested parties may call 2888 0008 and press 2 or visit www.nowtv.now.com

 

Kapuso viewers abroad can catch the latest updates from GMA International channels by visiting the website www.gmanetwork.com/international, Facebook pageswww.facebook.com/GMAPinoyTV, www.facebook.com/gmalifetv, and, www.facebook.com/gmanewsinternational, and Twitter pages @GMAPinoyTV and @GMA_LifeTV.

#GMAnewsfeed, the First Facebook-only Newscast in the Philippines

Ivan Mayrina anchors #GMAnewsfeed on Facebook

What happens when traditional newscast merges with today’s technology?  The result will be a very convenient news program for people on the go. Enter GMA News’ #GMAnewsfeed—the first-ever Facebook-only newscast in the Philippines.

 

Anchored by broadcast journalist Ivan Mayrina, #GMAnewsfeed is a two-minute newscast that offers a quick recap of the day’s most important news and trending stories. #GMAnewsfeed was launched last May 11, at 9 p.m. on the GMA News Facebook page (facebook.com/gmanews).

 

Produced by GMA News, the same team that created original Facebook contents like Ask Away and Sparring Session during the Pacquiao-Mayweather fight, #GMAnewsfeed is designed specifically for the country’s more than 32 million mobile Facebook users.

 

#GMAnewsfeed is part of GMA Network’s efforts to adapt to the constantly changing media landscape. It aims to reach not only the millenials and yuppies, but also viewers across age groups.

 

GMA News, which inspired Filipino netizens to “Think Before You Click” and be #IMReady, remains a social media leader in the Philippines. It is the country’s most-followed news organization on Twitter (twitter.com/gmanews) with 2.93 million followers.

 

Its Facebook page, with 4.8 million likes, is also among the top pages in the country. With 120 thousand users following GMA News’ public chat, it is also the top Philippine news organization on Viber. GMA News is also on Instagram (instagram.com/gmanews) and FireChat (firech.at/gmanews).

GMA Network tops digital TV coverage survey

Engr. Elvis B. Ancheta, Senior Vice President and Head of the Engineering Group

Broadcast giant GMA Network led in an independent study measuring digital TV presence in the country, affirming the robust coverage of the Network’s digital TV signal.

 

The study, which was conducted by local smartphone and tablet manufacturer Starmobile, revealed that GMA 1SEG and GMA News TV were available in 10 out of the 14 test locations in Metro Manila.

 

Other channels surveyed were ABS-CBN, ABS-CBN Sports, TV5, and AKSYON TV, among others.

 

“The results of the study confirm our readiness for the eventual shift to Digital TV,” says Engr. Elvis B. Ancheta, GMA Senior Vice President for Engineering.

 

In compliance with the directive of the National Telecommunications Commission, GMA has started to adapt the Japanese DTV standard or ISDB-T.

 

“Moreover, it manifests the level of importance the Network has placed in being able to reach as many viewers as possible as this ultimately determines our audience size,” Ancheta adds.

 

The Network takes pride in its commitment to signal superiority as evidenced by its excellent signal across the country, an advantage over competitors exhibited consistently by its analog footprint which it commits to carry over to digital.

 

Based on claimed household reception findings in the 2014 TV Establishment Survey of Nielsen Philippines, GMA is received by 99 percent of all TV households in Total Urban Philippines, leading other local free-to-air channels.

 

As it continues to improve and expand its coverage in the regions, GMA completed numerous transmission upgrades in 2014. The Network commissioned a new 2KW TV relay station in Daet, Camarines Norte and re-located its transmitting station in Iligan City to enable the re-broadcast of Northern Mindanao programs from Cagayan de Oro.

 

GMA is set to commission a new 5KW TV relay station in Butuan City this May.

GMA’s locally produced mobile apps win big in Southeast Asia

Kapuso Milyonaryo mobile app

Mob-Ex Awards 2015 South-East Asia

Certifying its consistent pursuit of creativity and innovation, GMA Marketing and Productions, Inc. (GMPI) was a big winner at the Mob-Ex Awards 2015 South-East Asia, garnering three (3) Gold and two (2) Bronze trophies. The awarding was held last February 5 at the Mandarin Orchard Hotel in Singapore.

 

Now on its third year, the Mob-Ex Awards is the premier award-giving body in Southeast Asia which recognizes excellence in the mobile marketing platform and honors organizations with sound and innovative mobile marketing strategies.

 

Winning a Gold award in the Best Use of Incentives/Rewards category and two Bronze awards for the Best In-App Advertising and Best App/Content by a Media Owner categories is GMA’s Kapuso Milyonaryo mobile app, the digital version of the Network’s popular Kapuso Milyonaryo promo. Now spanning six seasons, the Kapuso Milyonaryo promo continues to inspire Filipinos by giving them the chance to become instant millionaires through the submission of proof-of-purchase entries.

 

Kapuso Milyonaryo extended this endeavor in the digital arena via an endless runner mobile game app centered on the lovable character, Tobz. Set in a grocery, players must help Tobz collect digital entries while avoiding obstacles. Players get a chance to win cash prizes, smartphones and a grand prize of Php300,000, tax-free.

 

Del Monte Kitchenomics Branded Content & Companion Mobile App received the Gold prize in both the Best In-App Advertising and Best App/Content by a Media Owner categories. Finding new ways to reach their market and to encourage more moms to try their recipes, the innovative app was launched to revitalize Del Monte Kitchenomics, an established Filipino culinary club which has been providing Filipino moms with recipes in quick and easy steps for over three decades.

 

The Del Monte Kitchenomics mobile app, the first of its kind on local television, makes the recipes instantly accessible to viewers watching the cooking show. Just by scanning any Del Monte logo, users are able to download the recipes featured in the program. Among other tools and features, it also includes a Meal Planner and allows users to automatically add the recipes’ ingredients into the in-app shopping list, making the app a convenient tool for mothers on the go.

 

Both apps were made available for Android and Apple iOS devices for free.

 

GMA bagged 5 awards from a pool of 145 finalists and had the most awards from the Philippines.

IMREADY MOBILE APP NOW AVAILABLE FOR FREE DOWNLOAD

IM READY APP

The mobile version of GMA Network’s IMReady portal – the only one-stop shop online for disaster and emergency preparedness – is now ready for free download for all Android and Apple devices.

 

Similar to its online version, the IMReady mobile application also provides real-time information and updates including weather, traffic situations, and news alerts. To download, mobile users simply need to go to Google Play Store for Android phones or Apple App Store for Apple devices, search for the IMReady logo and click “Install.”  The application is optimized for ICS (version 4.0.3) and up for Android and iOS 6 and above for Apple.

 

Launched in February, GMA Network’s IMReady public safety portal is in partnership with Google, leading traffic navigation app Waze, and key Philippine government agencies namely the Metro Manila Development Authority (MMDA), Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC), Metro Rail Transit Authority (MRTA), Philippine National Railways (PNR), and the Department of Science and Technology (DOST).

 

Mobile users can also join the growing online community of IMReady through Facebook (Facebook.com/imreadyph), Twitter (twitter.com/imreadyph), Instagram (@imreadyph), and the official IM Ready Waze Group through the downloadable Waze mobile app.

The problem with our government and with us!

Our government cannot implement changes within each of its many departments, which is why we are lagging behind our Asian counterparts.  It is because each individual, especially those who are in the higher chain of command, has each their own agenda.  Changes that is crucial for the country to grow are being hampered, as it might prove to be a money losing option for the departments management.  Each one is in it to enrich himself/herself, no one is looking for the benefit of the country, and for the improvement of the lives of millions of Filipinos, impoverished or otherwise.

Why can’t we copy or duplicate the methods used by other countries in implementing changes that would improve the lives of its citizens? Do not think of it as not being original, or plagiarizing, but think of it as improving the lives of every Filipino.

In Hong Kong, the Mass Transit Railway is controlled by the government, and so is the payment system that it uses, the Octopus Card.  They have proven and shown that the business is sound and profitable earning the government billions of dollars in revenue, while at the same time creating a clean, convenient, and comfortable mass transport and payment system, that has been a great factor in improving the lives of its citizens.  Why can’t we adopt their system, and duplicate it here? What is stopping us?

Why are our airports dilapidated and in shambles? Where has all the money that has been invested into it go? Why do we need too many terminals? Can’t we create one mega terminal to service all of the flights? This would eliminate unnecessary employment to numerous individuals, who sometimes do nothing, and just sit around, beefing up their pockets? Why can’t we copy Hong Kong (again), and the way it runs its airport? Their airport and ours are so far apart.  The only difference I see here is because the head of the governments, compliment and continue what the previous head of government has done, unlike here, the new one undermines and destroys the good that the previous one has done.  Don’t they know that these improvements would have bettered the lives of the millions of Filipinos?

Why are our mass transport systems unstructured and in shambles? Why are there numerous buses who are old, and dilapidated that still ply the streets, which breakdown, create traffic, and causes accidents? Why are their franchises renewed time and time again, and are not revoked even if their buses have cause numerous accidents, and unnecessary deaths? Why are there so many taxis, jeeps, tricycles, and other forms of mass transport franchises that are approved, even if the streets are littered with them, who do not have passengers?

Why does the government not install solar powered lights or provide solar energy to those affected by disaster, and isolation, even if it takes years for the energy providers to repair or install light or power? Why does the government wait and see, and not help improve the plight of the Filipinos? Are they afraid that power generators/energy suppliers complain? They can remove or pull out these improvements, when they have repaired or installed light or electricity, and simply transfer or reuse them again when the need arise.

I am not one to complain, but I have seen enough suffering and not enough action, that it has left me wondering and disgruntled by the inept and inaction that our government is doing.  When can we be proud? When can we say that our lives have improved? When will our descendants see the day that our beloved Philippines, is at par with the rest of the world, or at least with its Asian neighbors?

Are We Still Human?

I read in a news article about this pedicab driver, who was in a traffic accident along Taft Avenue in Manila.  It is already a tragic news, but the saddest part was that no one tried to help him.  Not even one soul tried to give him a helping hand! There were a lot of passing cars, curious on lookers, and law enforcement officials, but no one tried to help him.  There was a nearby hospital not far from the site of the accident.  It was alleged that he was still alive for an hour or two, would he have been brought to the hospital swiftly, he could have survived.  But it took five hours before even help came, but by that time it was already too late.  No one showed compassion, care, or decency! With this tragic accident a life could have been saved, a wife lost her husband, children lost their father, a mother lost her son, a father lost his son, or a sibling lost a sibling.

Also in a similar case, but this time in China.  This was recorded in CCTV, and the video was uploaded in  You Tube a year or two ago.  A toddler got run over by a truck in a busy Chinese market.  The driver who ran over the toddler, did not even bother to look at the toddler he ran over.  Minutes have passed, passersby and vehicles passed and saw the toddler, but no one tried to help the toddler.  One kind old woman saw the toddler, and helped the toddler to get to the side, and then the mother comes.  Although we are not blaming the mother for the accident, but I am just saying that she could have better taken care of her child.  The truck driver who ran over the toddler, and immediately left the site, could have stopped and brought the kid to the hospital, and surrendered himself to the authorities.  The toddler died after a few days in the hospital, from the massive internal injuries she received from the accident.  Another sad incident where a life was lost.  Another incident that could have been prevented.

My question is this! Are we still human? Are we not better than lowly animals? Is modernization, technology, and distrust pushing our emotions aside? Where is the compassion? The care? The human decency of helping someone who direly needs it? How can we say that humanity or the human race has advanced by leaps and bounds, if some of us have reverted back to their animalistic behaviors? We can truly say that we have advanced, if we can still show compassion, care and human decency, coinciding with advancement.

Please remember people are human beings! They are not androids, robots, or inanimate objects.  They have a father, a mother, siblings, wife, or children.  Please do not revert back to your primitive selves.  Remember the world needs heroes! Heroes not of the likes of Superman, Batman, Iron Man, Thor, Hawk Eye, Green Lantern, etc., but heroes just like you! Ordinary people who do extraordinary things, helping others, not thinking about their own safety or well being.  Those are the real heroes we need.  Be a hero today!

GMA News videos now accessible on iPhones

Filipino mobile news consumers from all parts of the world can now catch the latest news from GMA Network while they’re on the go.

 

An updated version of the GMA News mobile application for iOS now offers video clips from GMA News programs. The app is available for free download on the Apple App Store.

 

GMA News Online v 2.0 for iPhone, iPad, and iPod enables users to customize its content by choosing which sections of the website will appear on the app. It also features an option to display 10 or 15 articles from each section.

 

“We just want to be where news consumers are going. Our improved app combines two exploding trends – mobile and online video,” GMA News Online editor-in-chief and GMA Network VP for Multimedia Journalism Howie Severino said.

 

He explained that only selected GMA news videos will be viewable on mobile initially, but the volume of video content will eventually increase.

 

Developed by New Media Inc., the updated app has a new action bar that lets users go directly to his or her favorite section and manage customization settings. It also includes links to the YouScoop app on iTunes, as well as to the GMA News mobile site, Twitter profile, and Facebook page.

In an effort to make GMA News content available in more social media platforms, articles on the new app may now be shared not just on Facebook, but also through email and on Twitter. 

The app lets users experience smooth, paper-like scrolling within the articles. A single swipe enables readers to move from one section to another or from one article to the next story on the same section.

Each story on the app also includes a link on that gives users the option to read the story on the GMA News Online mobile site.

Future Payment Systems

The advent of technology has indeed brought us forward by leaps and bounds.  I am tackling the payment systems.

Before we were used to pay with our credit cards.  They swipe it in a terminal, wait for the confirmation code, print, and ask us to sign.  We thought this was hi-tech already for its time.

Then came the Octopus card of Hong Kong, which looks like a credit card, but does not function like one.  You do not need to sign anything. What you do is choose what you would like to buy, the cashier punches your order/items, then you tap in a terminal, and that’s it.  Instantaneous.  It is a reloadable cash card, which can be used for mass transport such as buses, trams, ferry, and the MTR.  It is also accepted as a payment option for McDonalds, Wellcome Supermarket, Watsons, Park & Shop, etc.  The only disadvantage is when you lose this card, it will remain lost, as there is usually no identifying marks or identification on the card itself to prove that it is yours.  Unless you have it personalized.  But cashier seldom check the legality of the card holder.

Then came the “swipe less” or “pay wave” credit card.  This is still a credit card, and can still be used as a normal one, wherein you swipe it and get the confirmation code.  But it can also be used almost similar to the Octopus Card System, wherein you just need to “tap” or “wave” your card in front of a reader and the charges will be debited to your credit card.

Now the more modern payment options are as follows.  In countries such as Japan, all you need to do is “wave” or “tap” your mobile phone to a reader, and the reader confirms your account, and the charges will be billed to your mobile phone bill.  Other countries are adopting such method such as U. S. A., wherein Visa International and Master Card International are developing such technologies, wherein your smart phone can store your credit card details, and all you need to do is let a machine or device read the “bar code” or “QR code” from your phone, and the charges will be billed to your credit card.

It was even touted that there would come a time, when we “humans” will be implanted with a microchip, that can be read by a scanner or a machine, and it would instantly know our medical backgrounds, such as our illnesses, medicines being taken, allergies, etc.  It can also store your social security ID, your driver license details, your home address detail, your business details, your work details, etc.  And it can definitely store your credit scores, credit background, and credit card details as well.  So in the near future, all you need to bring is yourself.  Just go to a supermarket, choose what you need, proceed to the payment counter, and get your goods.