Twitter offers new data controls and updates privacy policy

Press release

18 May 2017, MANILA - Today, Twitter announced a suite of industry-leading tools to give people more access to their information and greater, more granular control over how it’s used. The company has also updated the Privacy Policy to reflect the improvements that they’ve made to Twitter.

Below are the most important updates rolling out in the coming days:

TOOLS

• Increased transparency: Twitter is expanding Your Twitter Data to give people the most transparent access to their Twitter information to date, including demographic and interest data, and advertisers that have included them in their tailored audiences on Twitter. Each category of data will be clearly marked, and they will be able to view or modify this data directly.

New controls: Twitter is also launching new Personalization and Data settings that offer even more granular control over how the company use users’ data, including how the company personalizes people’s experience on Twitter and user option to share information through certain partnerships. People can use these controls to better personalize their experience on Twitter and opt out of various types of data usage and sharing with a single switch.

• Personalization across your devices: When people log in, Twitter will associate their device with their account for purposes such as authentication and personalization. The company may also personalize your experience based on information from other devices besides the ones they use to log into Twitter - this can be turned off in the Personalization and Data settings. For example, if people visit websites with sports content on their laptop, they can use this setting to help control whether Twitter show them sports-related ads on Twitter for Android or iOS.

POLICY

• Web data: We’ve expanded how we use and store data from other websites that integrate Twitter content, like embedded Tweets. This will allow Twitter to further improve and personalize the services, connecting people with the stories, brands and organic content they care about most. The company do not store web page visit data for users who are in the European Union and EFTA States. We’re also excited to announce that we will be participating in the Swiss-US Privacy Shield and adhering to the Digital Advertising Alliance’s Self-Regulatory Principles for Online Behavioral Advertising.

• Data sharing: We’ve updated on how we share non-personal, aggregated, and device-level data, including through some select partnership agreements that allow the data to be linked to your name, email, or other personal information – but only when you give your consent to those partners.

Privacy is built into Twitter’s DNA as a company and it’s something the company take an active role in promoting and advocating for across the world. Twitter partners with civil society, they stand up to governments and continue to evolve efforts around transparency. Twitter’s commitment to protecting and defending users’ privacy will continue as they build industry leadership on this issue. For more information, visit Twitter Help Center.

adidas Uprising Philippines 2017 OPENING GAME RESULTS

Press release

Following the official launch of this year's adidas Uprising Philippines, the 3-Stripes brand opened their summer basketball grassroots program last Saturday, May 13, through a series of games that determined which of the a-listed basketball teams from select Metro Manila high schools will proceed to the elimination round.

From 32 teams, we are now down to the 16 teams. Observing a round robin tournament format, the following list will be further cut down during the elimination round happening from May 15 to 19.

• Mapua-Malayan Red Robbins
• Jubilee Christian Academy
• Lyceum Junior Pirates (LPU)
• Taytay Captains (Taytay HS)
• San Sebastian College
• La Salle Greenhills A
• Kings Montessori Vikings
• Ateneo High School A
• Agila (Ateneo High School B)
• National University (NU)
• AMA
• Letran
• Chang Kai Shek College (CKSC)
• Arellano University Braves
• UST Tiger Cubs
• San Beda College Taytay (San Beda A)
  

The two emerging teams will then proceed to compete for this year's adidas Uprising Philippines champion title. Watch the future of Philippine basketball unfold before you by joining us at the:

adidas Uprising Championship

on May 20 (Saturday), 6:00 PM

at the Titan Love Court, BGC.

Newest adidas HomeCourt store in Glorietta 3

Press release

adidas Philippines announces the opening of its newest HomeCourt store in Glorietta 3 which features adidas' proud sports heritage.

Since adidas introduced its iconic global retail concept, HomeCourt, to the Philippines last year, adidas fans and sports enthusiasts alike have been experiencing the energy of the game and the passion of the sport in the retail arena.

Created to provide consumers with a unique and interactive shopping experience, adidas HomeCourt offers a next generation store concept that turns retail into a place where consumers can experience the excitement and thrill of the game.

HomeCourt's architecture and design allow consumers to interact directly with adidas' products and the brand itself.

Check out the latest in adidas apparel and shoes across different sports categories at the newest adidas HomeCourt store located in 2/F, Glorietta 3, Makati City.

Curtin University Advances Smart Campus Vision with Hitachi IoT Solution

Press release

Curtin University has selected Hitachi to deploy an internet of things (IoT) solution to advance its vision of a smart campus that enhances the student experience, improves classroom learning and ultimately attracts more industry to collaborate on data-driven research. Curtin is achieving this by partnering with Hitachi to co-create solutions that harness IoT data through advanced analytics to provide insight into the daily running and utilization of the campus.

Curtin University has more than 60,000 students and 4,000 staff on 300,000sqm of floor space. It is Western Australia’s largest and most culturally diverse university, and has one of Australia’s largest international student populations.

Ian Callahan, chief operating officer of Curtin University said: “Understanding our campus operations and building utilization has become a major factor in Curtin’s smart campus initiative. With the Hitachi IoT solution, we can collect data using a variety of sensors to gather information on building trends, study patterns, and course attendance that can ultimately be used to improve student experience and enhance learning.”

Ultimately, these data insights allow Curtin University to generate contextual information about the lifecycle of the student, the day to day reality of a staff member, the activity pattern of a lecture theater, and the dynamics and environmental health of a library.

Callahan added: “We are effectively creating a living laboratory that is an open invitation to our own researchers and scientists from other universities to use our campus to discover and innovate with data-driven research. Hitachi demonstrated not only technology leadership but approached us with a very open mind, to participate in that living environment and collaborate with others.”

With the Hitachi solution, the university will be able to combine video data with operational data across its campus facilities to provide analytics that support a smart campus. This is achieved through the integration of Hitachi Visualization Suite, Hitachi Video Analytics, Pentaho, Live Face Matching and Hitachi Data Systems Infrastructure and Compute. The single analytics dashboard provides the real-time knowledge the university needs to make informed decisions about their classes, operations and future requirements.

“Curtin University is a prime example of forward-thinking organizations that have challenged Hitachi to develop its video analytics solutions to go beyond surveillance and public safety. They are effectively pioneers of digital transformation,” said Mark Jules, vice president of public safety and smart city solutions at Hitachi Insight Group. “We’re excited to be co-creating a comprehensive IoT-enabled solution with them and we look forward to working with Curtin University and their research partners to accelerate future innovation through our ongoing collaboration.”

Hustle harder with these five must-haves for your smartphone

Press release

Modern life is full of obstacles that can slow you down – traffic, heavy workload, and unexpected changes throughout the week. To stay ahead, you need to always stay on your toes, plan ahead, and be flexible. Along with a can-do attitude, it also helps to have the right gadgets in your arsenal to let you to deal with these anytime, anywhere.

First things first, let’s start with your smartphone. To be able to perform and keep up with your every busy lifestyle, you will need a device that has a large memory. With this, you’ll be able to work and use different tools and applications all at once without worrying about your phone slowing down, making multi-tasking so easy especially when you’re on-the-go.

Here are five essential tools that you need in your smartphone to help you make it through the everyday hustle:

1. A trusty organizer – To let you manage your day and multiple commitments without skipping anything important, an organizer right in your smartphone will always come in handy. Some apps can send you reminders a few minutes before a scheduled appointment so you’ll never have to be late, or even alert you about an upcoming summer trip so you can stay ahead. When it comes to keeping all those ideas and plans of yours organized in a jiffy, Evernote is an app that’s worth checking out.

2. Powerful messaging applications – In this hyper-connected world, you should never be out of touch. Thankfully, there’s a plethora of messaging tools that you can use – whether it’s SMS, Viber, Facebook Messenger, WhatsApp, Skype, or other messaging apps that you can install on your smartphone. You can chat face-to-face, quickly send large files, submit a report to your boss, or even share high-resolution (you’ll need storage for this, of course) photos and videos with your friends from that epic beach trip over the weekend.

3. 24/7 connectivity – In this day and age, you can’t afford not to be connected 24/7. If you still aren’t, go get yourself round-the-clock internet connection via your smartphone, so that all updates are fast and right at your fingertips. It’s no longer a luxury, but an essential tool that will keep you productive and always apprised of what’s happening out there – whether it’s about work requirements, vacation tips, or the latest news from friends and family from halfway across the globe.

4. Music Player – There are some people who work better when accompanied by relaxing ambient music because this helps them disengage from the stress and refocus their thoughts. A trusty music player on your phone is always a must. During quick down times, say, while you’re stuck in traffic or killing time during a layover flight, you can listen to your favorite band, or maybe even an audio version of a book you’ve been meaning to read for the longest time.

5. Navigation guides – We all get lost, so you do need some help from time to time. Make sure your smartphone’s stocked up on those all-important navigation guides such as Waze and Google Maps. These are especially helpful when you’re going to a new place and you don’t have much time to spare. Having fast updates is the name of the game, and it’s great to have these guides in your smartphone to instantly plan your routes, estimate departure times, and even find parking spaces and nearby restaurants so that you’re treated to a hassle-free roadtrip.

All these must-have tools listed above are needed by performance junkies everyday, so it’s important to ensure that your smartphone has enough running memory to have your favorite applications working all at once, with no lagging concerns, especially when you’re on-the-go. Thankfully, Samsung has released the Galaxy C9 Pro with a whopping 6GB RAM and 64GB internal memory that allows you to easily and seamlessly accelerate your performance. Even with your many different projects, hobbies, and trips that make up that multi-faceted lifestyle, the Galaxy C9 Pro’s 6GB RAM can definitely keep up with your fast performance, so that you’re free to do more and be more.

Made for those who are constantly driven to perform their very best, the Samsung Galaxy C9 Pro sports a 6.0" FHD Super AMOLED display for effortless viewing of files, as well as more relaxed viewing of movies and videos. To capture unforgettable moments, it comes with a 16MP front camera, combined with an F/1.9 aperture lens to definitely up your selfie game. Always a workhorse, the Samsung Galaxy C9 Pro comes with a 4,000mAh battery that ensures hours of uninterrupted usage, allowing you to further ramp up your performance throughout the day, whether it be for work or play.

For those who want to make the most out of their day, the Samsung Galaxy C9 Pro is the must-have device, with its premium features that guarantee high-speed and seamless performance. Priced at P27,990 SRP, it’s the ultimate gadget that will let you embrace a multi-faceted lifestyle.

Get the Samsung Galaxy C9 Pro at Samsung Experience Stores, official retail partners, and online via Lazada starting May 5, 2017. You may avail of 0% installment up to 24 months (BDO/Citibank Cards only) or up to 0% for 12 months for all credit cards nationwide in our Samsung Experience Stores.

For more information, visit: http://www.samsung.com/ph/smartphones/galaxy-c9/

Filipina Beauties Reign on Twitter

Press Release

280,000 Tweets related to #BbPilipinas2017

Manila, Philippines - 1 May 2017 - After hosting the 2016 Miss Universe beauty pageant last January, all eyes were focused on the Binibining Pilipinas 2017 candidates who will be representing the Philippines in the upcoming beauty pageants for 2017; namely, Universe, International, Intercontinental, Supranational, Grand International and Globe. Hosted by Miss Universe 2015 Pia Alonzo Wurtzbach (@PiaWurtzbach) herself,  Miss Universe 2010 4th runner-up Venus Raj (@Onlyvenusraj) and actor Xian Lim (@XianLimm), there were at least 280,000 Tweets related to #BbPilipinas2017 (29 April - 1 May 2017).  

Twitter is the first place where Filipinos cheered for their favorite candidates that they think deserve to receive the prestigious crown. Here are the Top five most mentioned #Binibini on Twitter (30 April - 1 May 2017). From the Binibinis’ beautiful gowns, question and answer portion up to the announcement of winners, people tuned in to Twitter to share opinions and reactions about the pageant. Here are the top Tweets related to the #BbPilipnas2017 coronation event.

If Filipinos are on Twitter to voice out their support; candidates are also on Twitter to share their journey with their fans, whether it’s their backstage preparation or off-camera moments.  

One of the crowd’s favorite candidates Katarina Rodriguez (@KatarinaRodri) even used her Twitter account to let people know what the pageant meant, not just for her but also for her family.

Above all, this night was about the ladies who stood out among the 40 contestants. Her passion, beauty, and intelligence served as her key to the crown. Rachel Peters - Binibini 19 was hailed as this year’s Miss Universe Philippines and she will be the country’s representative for the Miss Universe 2017 beauty pageant. This outstanding 25-year old Filipino-British beauty is from the province of Camarines Sur and took up International Baccalaureate at the British School in Phuket, Thailand and has a Bachelor of Business, Tourism and Events degree from La Trobe University in Australia.

Her supporters, pageant fans, and even entertainment personalities flocked on Twitter to celebrate her coronation and to send their congratulations.

Hours before the coronation night, fans gathered early outside the Araneta Coliseum to make sure that they will be there on time to witness the event. While inside, crowd was cheering loud at the top of their voice with their banners for the candidate they are rooting for.

Spotted at the event is the sweetness of one of this generation’s biggest love team and real life couple KathNiel (Kathryn Bernardo [@bernardokath] and Daniel Padilla [@imdanielpadilla]). Daniel serenades the candidates and the audience while Kathryn was there supporting her boyfriend.